UNIVERSITY  OF  N.C.  AT  CHAPEL  HILL 


00022093850 


-■ 


PETER    BAAS    IN    THE    DOCKYARD. 


THE    HISTORY 

OF 

PETER  THE  GREAT, 


CZAR     OF     RUSSIA 


BT 


SARAH  H.  BRADFORD. 

AT7THOE  OF  THE    "  STOKT  OP  COLUMBUS,"    "  LEWTE,"    "  THE  6ILVEB   LAKE 
STOEIES,"  ETC.,   ETC.  ■*, 


1  To  a  great  man  nothing  is  little." 


NEW  YORK: 

D.  APPLETON   AND    COMPANY, 


346  &  348  BROADWAY. 

V 


1858.  \ 


Enteeed,  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  tho  year  1857,  by 

D.  APPLETON  &  CO., 

In  the  Clerk's  Office  of  the  District  Court  of  the  United  States  for  the 
Southern  District  of  New  York. 


t&xtixtxon. 


TO  THE  EEV.  THOMAS  C.  REED,  D.  D., 

To  whose  kind  counsel  and  interest  I  am  much  indebted 
in  the  prosecution  of  my  feeble  attempts  to  make  history  inte- 
resting to  the  young,  I  dedicate  this  little  work,  which  is  spe- 
cially designed  for  a  class  of  youth  in  whom  he  is  particularly 
interested. 

As  "  Columbus"  and  Peter  the  Great  "  go  out  together  to 
the  children  of  the  land,  it  will  be  very  pleasant  to  me  to  see 
upon  their  pages  the  names  of  two  good  friends  of  my  own  and 
of  each  other ;  the  one  of  whom  in  doing,  and  the  other  in 
doing  and  in  suffering,  are  working  good  for  themselves,  and 
for  all  who  come  within  the  range  of  their  influence. 

S.  H.  B. 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 

in  2012  with  funding  from 

University  of  North  Carolina  at  Chapel  Hil 


http://archive.org/details/historyofpetergrOObra 


PEEFACE 


TO  THOSE  FOR  WHOM  THIS  BOOK  WAS  WRITTEN. 

My  dear  Young  Friends: — I  suppose  it  is 
hardly  necessary  to  tell  you  that  I  never  had  any 
personal  acquaintance  with  Peter  the  Great,  Czar 
of  Russia.  All  I  know  of  him  I  have  gathered 
from  books ;  and  you  will  agree  with  me  that  it 
has  not  been  an  easy  task  to  write  the  memoir  of 
this  great  man,  when  I  tell  you  that  different  au- 
thors have  given  entirely  different  accounts  of  him, 
according  to  the  different  points  of  view  from 
which  they  beheld  him. 

There  is  a  rugged  coast  upon  an  island  far 
away,  where  a  bold  headland  of  rock  juts  out  into 
the  sea.  Approach  this  rock  from  one  side,  and 
you  see  the  profile  of  a  man  ;  from  the  other,  and 
you  behold  the  similitude  of  a  bear.  So  with  the 
subject  of  our  story. 


6  PREFACE. 

Some  looking  at  but  one  side  of  his  character, 
have  seen  only  the  great  hero ;  others  taking  the 
opposite  view,  have  beheld  only  a  great  bear  or 
savage.  I  think  before  we  get  through  with  him 
we  shall  see  a  little  of  both. 

If  those  who  looked  at  only  one  side  had  gone 
round  to  the  other,  they  would  have  seen  the 
bear;  and  if  these  had  taken  their  places,  they 
would  have  looked  upon  the  man,  rough  and  rug- 
ged it  may  be,  but  strong  and  bold,  pushing  him- 
self out  from  the  barbarism  of  his  times,  breasting 
with  unchanged  front  the  troubled  sea  which 
lashed  against  him,  and  saying  to  its  angry  waves, 
"  Thus  far  shalt  thou  go,  and  no  farther." 

From  the  different  histories,  memoirs,  and  let- 
ters of  the  time  of  Peter  the  Great,  I  have  gath- 
ered those  accounts  which  agree,  and  which  seem 
to  be  well  authenticated,  and  placed  them  together 
in  a  continued  story,  for  such' of  my  young  friends 
as  may  not  be  acquainted  with  the  history  of  one 
of  the  greatest  monarchs  that  ever  reigned. 

It  has  not  been  possible  to  make  this  story  as 
simple  as  that  of  "  Columbus  ; "  and  I  can  only  say 
that  if  any  of  my  younger  readers  come  across 
words  of  which  they  do  not  understand  the  mean- 
ing, they  must  go  at  once  to  that  never  impatient 
friend  of  young  inquirers,  the  Dictionary,  and  then 
they  will  be  learning  in  more  ways  than  one. 

There  is  many  a  hard  name  in  the  Russian, 
Swedish,  and  Polish  languages.  As  in  the  "  Colum- 
bus," whenever  it  was  possible,  I  have  left  these 


PREFACE.  V 

out,  and  many  a  brave  man  has  sunk  in  this  little 
work  to  the  insignificance  of  "  a  Polish  officer,"  "  a 
Swedish  gentleman,"  or  "a  Russian  nobleman," 
just  because  of  his  unpronounceable  name. 

Now  if  you  come  to  some  names  which  make 
your  jaws  ache,  and  others  which  you  cannot  man- 
age except  by  "  three  sneezes  and  a  ski ;  "  please 
do  not  blame  me ;  I  am  sure  if  I  had  had  the 
naming  of  the  gentlemen,  I  should  have  done  bet- 
ter by  them. 

One  word  more  as  to  names  of  places  and  per- 
sons mentioned  in  this  book.  Since  the  time  of 
Peter  the  Great,  there  has  been  an  entire  altera- 
tion in  the  spelling  of  many  of  these,  so  that  if  you 
read  the  names  of  places  as  they  were  then  spelled, 
and  look  for  them  on  a  modern  map,  you  will 
hardly  recognize  them.  Thus  I  find  the  town  of 
Kiau  spelled  in  four  different  ways,  till  it  has  new 
become  Kiev. 

My  principal  authorities  in  writing  this  little 
work  have  been,  Voltaire's  Peter  the  Great,  and 
Charles  Twelfth,  Barrow's  Memoirs  of  Peter  the 
Great,  which  book  is  little  else  than  a  compilation 
from  other  authors,  and  Middleton's  History  and 
Geography,  an  old  and  valuable  book,  for  which  I 
am  indebted  to  the  kindness  of  a  clerical  friend. 
This  book  was  exceedingly  interesting  and  useful 
to  me,  as  it  contained  maps  of  the  time,  and  views 
of  the  places  as  they  appeared  at  the  time  of  which 
I  have  written. 

Wishing  you,   my  dear  young  Mends,   more 


8  PEEFACE. 

pleasure  in  reading  the  book  than  I  have  had  in 
preparing  it  for  you ;  and  hoping  you  will  be  as 
much  interested  in  it  as  the  story  itself,  however 
told,  deserves,  I  say  farewell  for  the  present. 

Your  friend, 

S.  H.  B. 


CONTENT'S 


CHAPTER  I. 

Eussia  before  the  time  of  Peter  the  Great— Its  extent— The  Czar 
Alexis — Eude  state  of  the  people — Splendor  of  the  Court — Eeligion— 
Plans  of  Alexis — Curious  custom  attending  the  choico  of  a  wife  for 
the  Czar— Story  of  the  Czar's  second  marriage 13 

CHAPTEE  II. 

Children  of  the  Czar  Alexis— Defects  of  Theodore  and  John — "What  be- 
came of  the  daughters — Ambitious  plans  of  Sophia — Death  of  Theo- 
dore— Peter  appointed  successor — Eevolt  of  the  Strelitzes — Deeds  of 
blood  and  horror — Sophia  becomes  Eegent — Her  plans  as  to  Peter — 
Peter  asserts  his  right  to  the  throne— Plot  to  murder  him— How  over- 
thrown—Punishment of  Sophia— Death  of  John.  ...      22 

CHAPTEE  III. 

The  Title  of  Czar— Peter's  Personal  Appearance— Habits — Dread  of 
Water— The  Old  Bark — Beginning  of  the  Eussian  Navy— The  Czar  a 
Sailor — His  efforts  to  raise  a  Disciplined  Army— The  Czar  a  Soldier — 
Le  Fort— His  Influence  over  the  Czar .33 

CHAPTEE  IV. 

The  Pastry  cook's  boy— The  poisoning  plot  discovered — Peter's  separa- 
tion from  his  wife — The  siege  of  Azof— The  traitor  Jacob — The  tri- 
umphal procession— A  conspiracy— How  defeated— A  strange  plan  of 
the  Czar— The  Czar  in  Holland— The  curiosity  he  excited— His  dread 
of  a  crowd — His  rage  at  the  authorities  of  Zaandam.    ...      44 

1* 


10  CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  V. 

Peter  Bas  in  the  dock-yard  at  Zaandam— He  earns  a  pair  of  shoes— His 
curiosity — The  sound  tooth  extracted— He  goes  to  England — Learns 
various  trades— Annoyed  hy  the  crowd— His  private  habits— Saye's 
court— How  the  Czar  left  it— The  call  at  the  palace — The  rough 
ruby.  55 

CHAPTER   VI. 

The  Czar  inquires  as  to  different  religious  sects— The  Burgomaster's  wig 
— The  rebellion  in  Russia— Its  causes— The  Czar's  appearance  in 
Russia— Defeat  and  punishment  of  the  rebels— Various  improve- 
ments—The dock-yard  at  Voronitz— Death  of  Le  Fort— Peter  a 
laborer. 66 

CHAPTER  VII. 

Peter  the  Great  as  a  warrior— Charles  Twelfth — Dangers  that  threatened 
Sweden — Charles  in  a  new  character — Causes  of  quarrel  between 
Sweden  and  the  other  countries—  Battle  of  Narva — Its  result— How 
Peter  bore  his  defeat— New  improvements— Victories  of  Scherematof. 

75 

CHAPTER  VIII. 

The  siege  of  Marienburg— The  young  widow— Her  eventful  story— Change 
of  fortune  for  the  Czar — The  "  Key  City  "  —Triumphal  entry  into 
Moscow 86 

CHAPTER  IX. 

Building  of  the  City  of  St.  Petersburg— Trouble  and  sickness— The 
miracle  of  the  "Weeping  Virgin — Ships  visit  the  new  city — New  pro- 
jects of  the  Czar— Battles— Affairs  in  Poland— St.  Petersburg  threat- 
ened by  a  Swedish  fleet — Battles  and  sieges — The  Czar  unfortunate, 
but  not  discouraged. 94 

CHAPTER  X. 

Tidings  of  the  approach  of  Charles  the  Twelfth— Battle  of  Grodno— The 
disgraceful  course  of  Augustus— The  story  of  General  Patkul— His 
imprisonment  and  death— Indignation  of  the  Czar— The  throne  of 
Poland  declared  vacant — Designs  of  Stanislaus  and  Charles.       .    105 

CHAPTER  XL 

Charles  advances  towards  Russia— The  peasants  and  their  ambassador— 


CONTENTS.  11 


Escape  of  the  Czar  at  Grodno — A  terrible  march — The  passage  of  the 
river  Berezine— Battle  at  another  stream— Mysterious  change  in  the 
plans  of  Charles 115 

CHAPTEE  XII. 

Mazeppa — An  explanation  of  the  conduct  of  King  Charles — Difficulties 
of  the  march— Mazeppa  appears,  and  how— The  Czar  attacks  the 
Swedes  under  Lewenhaupt — A  three  days'  battle,  and  its  result.     122 

CHAPTEE  XIII. 

Sad  plight  of  Charles  and  his  army— Obstinacy  of  the  King — The  Czar's 
offer  to  Mazeppa— Pultowa— The  siege  and  the  battle — Accident  to 
King  Charles— The  dinner  in  the  Czar's  tent— The  way  the  Czar 
•  treated  his  "  masters  in  the  art  of  war."  .  .  .  133 

CHAPTER  XIV. 

Changes  effected  by  the  battle  of  Pultowa— Charles  Twelfth  at  Bender— 
His  application  to  the  Sultan— The  Turks  determine  on  war— Catha- 
rine declared  Empress — Her  innuence'over  the  Czar— The  toilsome 
march  towards  the  Pruth.        ......    143 

CHAPTEE   XV. 

The  Grand  Yizier's  invitation  to  Charles,  and  his  answer — Battle  of  the 
Pruth — The  Czar  in  convulsions — Catharine's  mediation— A  treaty 
of  peace,  and  its  conditions — Contemptible  offer  of  Charles— His 
insult  to  the  Grand  Vizier — The  Czar  goes  to  Carlsbad — The  Prince 
Alexis. 154 

CHAPTEE  XVI. 

The  marriage  of  Alexis— His  character— Celebration  of  the  Czar's  old 
wedding— Eomantic  story  of  the  brother  of  Catharine— The  war  car- 
ried into  Sweden — Triumphal  procession — Promotion  of  Eear  Admi- 
ral Peter 163 

CHAPTER   XVII. 

The  Royal  prisoners  in  Turkey— Return  of  Charles— Siege  of  Stralsund 
— Anecdote  of  Charles— Success  of  the  Czar— Entertainments  at  the 
Court  of  Russia— New  travels  of  the  Czar — High  price  of  eggs — Recep- 
tion at  Amsterdam.       .......    175 

CHAPTER  XVIII. 
Peter's  reception  at  Zaandam— His  visit  to  the  hut  where  he  once  re- 


12  CONTENTS. 


sided— Eelics  exhibited  there — Peter's  emotion  on  revisiting  this 
place — His  visit  to  the  shipbuilder's  house — Anecdote  of  his  son — The 
Czar's  visit  to  France— Death  of  the  wife  of  Alexis— Birth  of  a 
Prince.    .........    185 

CHAPTEE  XIX. 

The  conduct  of  the  unhappy  son  of  Peter  the  Great — The  promise  of  the 
young  Prince  to  his  father — His  flight  to  the  court  of  Charles  Sixth — 
Takes  refuge  in  Naples— Is  persuaded  to  return  to  Eussia— The  Czar's 
declaration — The  act  of  renunciation — The  trial  of  Alexis.     .        .  193 

CHAPTEE  XX. 

Opinion  of  the  Clergy — Last  examination  of  Prince  Alexis — His  Condem- 
nation— Eeports  as  to  Catharine's  influence  in  the  matter — Testimony 
of  others  on  the  subject — Death  of  Alexis — Opinions  of  some  persons, 
as  to  the  Manner  of  his  Death — The  Czar  turns  his  attention  once  more 
to  Internal  Improvements 206 

CHAPTEE  XXL 

The  War  with  Sweden  draws  to  a  close — Plans  proposed  for  the  Eecon- 
ciliation  of  the  two  great  Monarchs — The  designs  of  Charles  Twelfth 
upon  Norway — His  Power  of  Endurance — A  random  Shot  and  its 
Consequences — Peace  proclaimed — Peter  receives  the  title  of  "Em- 
peror and  Father  of  his  Country  " — Expedition  against  Persia- 
Coronation  of  Catharine — Story  of  Moens  and  his  Sister.      .        .  215 

CHAPTEE  XXII. 

Last  illness  of  the  Czar — His  dsath— Griei  of  the  Nation— Opinions  of, 
other  nations  with  regard  to  Peter— Last  honors  paid  to  the  Czar — 
His  Epitaph.         .....  ,  226 


PETER  THE  GREAT 


CHAPTER  I. 

Eussia  before  the  time  of  Peter  the  Great— Its  extent— The  Czar 
Alexis — Eude  state  of  the  people — Splendor  of  the  Court — Keligion — 
Plans  of  Alexis — Curious  custom  attending  the  choice  of  a  wife  for 
the  Czar— Story  of  the  Czar's  second  marriage. 

Before  we  begin  the  story  of  the  wonderful  man  of 
whom  this  book  will  tell  you,  it  is  necessary  that  you 
should  know  something  of  the  history  of  Russia,  at  the 
time  he  became  Czar  of  that  great  empire.  Look 
on  the  map,  and  trace  the  boundaries  of  the  Russian 
Empire  in  Europe  and  Asia,  and  you  will  see  a 
country  of  vast  extent,  borderiDg  on  Poland  and  the 
Frozen  Sea,  or,  as  it  is  now  called,  the  White  Sea, 
and  joining  Sweden  on  the  one  hand,  and  China  on 
the  other. 

It  is  greater  in  extent  than  all  the  rest  of  Europe. 
It  is  by  far  the  largest  empire  in  the  world.     While 


14  THE   HISTORY   OF 

the  people  on  its  western  shores  are  busy  at  noonday, 
about  their  daily  work,  those  in  the  eastern  part  of 
the  empire  are  sleeping,  at  midnight. 

This  country  was  for  a  time  called  Muscovy,  from 
the  name  of  its  capital,  Moscow,  and  its  people  were 
called  Muscovites,  but  now  if  is  again  every  where 
known  by  its  ancient  name  of  Russia.  Of  late  you 
have  heard  much  of  this  country  of  Russia,  and  your 
eyes  have  often  turned  to  one  little  spot  on  the  map 
called  the  Crimea,  where  bloody  battles  have  been 
fought,  and  thousands  of  brave  men  have  died  upon 
the  field. 

In  the  time  of  Peter  the  Great,  this  Crimea  was 
called  Crim  Tartary,  and  the  Sea  of  Azof  was  the 
Palus  Maeotis. 

"We  shall  not  go  farther  back  into  the  history  of 
Russia  than  the  time  of  the  father  of  Peter  the  Great, 
the  Czar  Alexis,  who  was  one  of  the  best  princes  that 
had  ever  reigned  over  Russia  Indeed,  he  did  more 
for  that  country  than  the  admirers  of  Peter  the 
Great  are  willing  to  allow,  and  began  many  of  the 
improvements  which  his  son  carried  out  and  com- 
pleted. 

Peter  was  great  enough,  as  you  will  see  in  reading 
his  history,  without  taking  from  the  merit  due  to  his 
father,  and  heaping  it  all  upon  him.  At  the  time 
Alexis  became  Czar  of  Russia,  the  people  were  little 


PETER  THE   GREAT.  15 

else  than  barbarians.  The  private  houses  were  only 
wooden  huts,  with  scarcely  any  furniture,  and  the 
Boyards,  or  noblemen,  slept  upon  boards  or  benches, 
with  only  the  skins  of  animals  under  them.  There 
were  no  pavements  in  the  streets,  nothing  convenient 
or  agreeable,  very  few  workmen,  and  those  very  awk- 
ward and  rude. 

There  were  magnificent  palaces,  however,  even 
then  in  the  city  of  Moscow,  and  on  public  days,  the 
Court  appeared  in  great  splendor.  The  Earl  of  Car- 
lisle, who  was  then  ambassador  from  England  to  the 
Czar  Alexis,  says  that  on  such  occasions  he  could  see 
nothing  but  gold  and  precious  stones  on  the  robes  of 
the  Czar  and  his  courtiers.  These  elegant  dresses, 
however,  were  not  made  in  Russia. 

The  established  religion  of  Russia  was  that  of 
the  Greek  Catholic  Church,  in  distinction  from  the 
Latin.  The  Patriarch,  or  head  of  this  Church, 
seemed  to  rank  in  power  even  above  the  Czar  himself. 
Once  or  twice  a  year,  on  some  great  occasions,  the 
Czar  walked  bareheaded  before  the  Patriarch,  lead- 
ing his  horse  by  the  bridle,  and  the  Patriarch  insisted 
upon  sitting  by  the  side  of  the  Czar  in  the  Senate, 
and  pretended  that  war  or  peace  could  not  be  made 
without  his  consent. 

At  length,  in  the  time  of  Alexis,  the  Patriarch 
became  so  insolent,  that  the  Czar,  finding  he  had  no 


16  THE   HISTORY    OF 

power  himself  to  put  him  down,  called  together  all 
the  Bishops,  and  had  a  formal  trial  of  the  Patriarch, 
for  receiving  money  from  the  Poles.  He  was  con- 
victed, turned  out  of  office,  and  shut  up  for  the  rest 
of  his  life  in  a  monastery,  and  another  Patriarch 
chosen  in  his  stead.  ' 

But  though  the  Greek  Catholic  was  the  established 
religion,  there  were  a  great  number  of  Mohammedan 
and  pagan  provinces.  All  Siberia  was  in  a  state  of 
idolatry,  and  many  provinces  had  no  religion  of  any 
kind. 

One  thing  which  tended  to  keep  the  Russians  in 
ignorance,  was  a  law  which  prevented  any  Russian 
from  leaving  his  country  on  pain  of  death.  So  there 
they  remained,  shut  up  within  their  own  boundaries, 
knowing  nothing  of  the  world  beyond,  and  like  the 
Chinese,  fancying  themselves  the  most  powerful  people 
on  earth. 

Alexis  seems  to  have  formed  the  design  of  raising 
his  country  from  the  state  of  ignorance  and  barbarism 
in  which  it  was  sunk,  and  of  making  it  more  like  the 
civilized  countries  of  the  globe,  of  which  he  had 
heard,  from  those  who  came  to  his  country. 

He  began  the  establishment  of  manufactories, 
altered  and  improved  the  laws,  tried  to  introduce 
regular  discipline  into  the  army,  by  bringing  in  foreign 
generals  to  train  his  soldiers ;  and  formed  plans  for 


PETER   THE   GREAT.  17 

the  building  of  ships  to  sail  on  the  Black  Sea  and  the 
Caspian,  for  this  country  at  that  time  did  not  own  a 
single  ship,  and  the  people  had  never  seen  such  an 
object. 

But  these  plans  of  the  Czar  Alexis  failed  from  the 
dislike  of  his  people  to  foreigners,  and  improvements 
of  every  kind.  They  were  contented  with  the  old 
way  of  doing  things,  and  did  not  like  the  idea  of 
change. 

Alexis  also  tried  to  introduce  silk  and  cotton 
manufactures,  by  means  of  some  Germans  and  Italians, 
but  in  this  he  did  not  succeed,  through  the  obstinacy  of 
the  barbarous  natives.  This  prince  was  twice  married. 
His  second  wife,  the  mother  of  Peter  the  Great,  was 
a  beautiful  young  lady  of  the  family  of  Nariskin. 
It  was  the  custom  for  the  Czar  to  marry  only  among 
his  own  subjects,  and  the  ceremonies  attending  his 
choice  of  a  wife  were  very  curious. 

A  number  of  the  most  beautiful  women  of  the 
kingdom  were  sent  for  to  Court.  They  were  received 
by  a  lady  whose  business  it  was  to  entertain  them  at 
her  house,  during  their  stay  at  the  capital.  The 
Czar  paid  them  visits,  sometimes  in  his  real  character, 
and  sometimes  in  disguise.  The  wedding-day  was 
fixed,  but  no  one  knew  on  whom  the  choice  had  fallen. 

On  the  appointed  day  all  assembled  at  the  palace, 
when  the  Czar  made  known  his  choice.     The  bride 


18  THE   HISTORY    OF 

elect  was  presented  with  a  rich  wedding  suit,  and 
other  dresses  were  given  to  the  rest  of  the  fair  candi- 
dates, who  then  returned  home. 

In  this  manner  the  Czar  Michael,  grandfather  to 
Peter  the  Great,  married  the  daughter  of  a  poor  man, 
who  was  ploughing  his  grounds  with  his  servants, 
when  a  messenger  came  from  the  Czar,  bringing  him 
presents,  and  telling  him  that  his  daughter  was  placed 
on  the  throne  of  Russia. 

The  second  marriage  of  the  Czar  Alexis  was  after 
this  fashion.  The  Boyard  Matveof,  minister  of  foreign 
affairs,  was  a  particular  friend  of  the  Czar.  The 
latter  going  one  evening  to  his  house,  without  attend- 
ants, as  was  frequently  his  custom,  found  the  table 
covered,  and  said  to  Matveof  in  a  familiar  way, 
"  Your  supper  looks  so  inviting,  that  it  tempts  me 
to  partake  of  it,  but  it  must  be  on  condition  that 
nothing  be  altered  on  my  account." 

He  was  scarcely  seated  when  the  wife  of  Matveof 
made  her  appearance,  followed  by  her  only  son  and  a 
young  lady.  The  Czar  insisted  on  their  sitting  down, 
though  contrary  to  the  usual  custom,  and  the  young 
lady  was  placed  opposite  the  royal  guest. 

He  observed  her  with  great  attention,  and  then 
said:  "I  thought  your  son  was  your  only  child." 
"Your  majesty,"  said  the  minister,  "is  right;  this 
young  lady  is  the  daughter  of  Kyrilla  Nariskin,  a 


.'HE    CZAR    CHOOSING    A    WIFE. 


PETER   THE   GREAT.  19 

relation  and  friend,  who  lives  on  his  own  estate  ;  my 
wife  has  undertaken  her  education,  and,  with  the 
blessing  of  Grod,  we  hope  to  settle  her  honorably  in 
the  world." 

The  family  having  retired,  the  Czar  observed  to 
the  minister  that  he  ought  to  think  of  a  suitable 
match  for  the  young  lady.  The  minister  replied  that, 
although  endowed  with  good  and  amiable  qualities, 
she  was  far  from  being  rich,  and  that  his  own  circum- 
stances would  not  allow  him  to  give  her  any  consider- 
able portion. 

Some  days  after  this,  the  Czar  returned  to  the  sub- 
ject of  the  young  lady,  and  told  Matveof  he  had  found 
a  gentleman  who  probably  might  be  agreeable  to  her ; 
one  not  destitute  of  merit,  and  who,  besides,  needed 
no  fortune  with  his  wife;  "  One,"  he  added,  "  who  is 
already  in  love  with  your  ward,  and  wishes  to  marry, 
and  make  her  happy."  Matveof,  of  course,  was  anxious 
to  know  who  this  suitor  might  be ;  and  after  some 
further  discourse  on  the  subject,  the  Czar  said :  "  Well 
Matveof,  you  may  tell  the  young  lady  it  is  /  who  am 
in  love  with  her,  and  am  determined  to  make  her  my 
wife." 

The  minister,  thunderstruck  at  so  unexpected  a 
declaration,  fell  at  the  feet  of  the  Czar,  and  entreated 
his  majesty,  for  the  love  of  God,  not  to  think  of  it ; 
adding,  that  he  had   many  enemies   at  court,  who 


20  THE   HISTORY    OF 

already  beheld  with  envious  eyes  the  particular  marlcs 
of  kindness  with  which  his  majesty  deigned  to  honor 
him ;  that  their  jealousy  would  be  increased  if,  to 
the  mortification  of  all  the  noble  families,  his  majesty 
should  condescend  to  marry  so  humble  a  girl,  who 
was  under  his  care.  The  Czar  told  him  he  had  nothing 
to  fear ;  that  his  determination  was  taken,  and  would 
not  be  altered. 

"  Since,  then,  it  is  so,"  said  Matveof,  "  I  have  one 
favor  to  beg,  as  well  for  the  sake  of  Natalia,  as  for 
myself;  which  is,  that  you  will  not  carry  your  wishes 
into  execution  without  conforming  to  the  usual  custom 
of  the  country,  and  thus  saving  appearances;  assemble 
at  your  court  the  daughters  of  the  most  distinguished 
families,  among  whom  Natalia  will  be  present,  and 
let  your  majesty's  choice  be  made  in  public."  The 
Czar  approved  his  minister's  advice,  and  promised 
to  follow  it. 

A  few  weeks  after  this,  Alexis  declared  before 
his  assembled  ministers,  and  to  the  heads  of  the 
clergy,  his  intention  of  making  a  second  marriage, 
and  ordered  them  to  call  together  the  unmarried 
daughters  of  the  principal  nobility,  in  order  that  he 
might  make  his  choice. 

About  sixty  young  ladies  of  high  birth  and  great 
beauty  were  assembled,  adorned,  as  may  well  be  sup- 
posed, in  great  splendor  of  dress  and  decoration,  but 


PETER   THE   GREAT.  21 

Natalia  Nariskin  was  the  lady  selected,  and  raised  at 
once  to  the  throne. 

This  event  took  place  at  Moscow,  in  September, 
1670.  * 

*  Staehlins'  Original  Anecdotes. 


22  THE   HISTORY   OP 


CHAPTER   II. 

Children  of  the  Czar  Alexis — Defects  of  Theodore  and  John — "What  be- 
came of  the  daughters— Ambitious  plans  of  Sophia — Death  of  Theo- 
dore— Peter  appointed  successor — Eevolt  of  the  Strelitzes — Deeds  of 
blood  and  horror — Sophia  becomes  Eegent — Her  plans  as  to  Peter — 
Peter  asserts  his  right  to  the  throne— Plot  to  murder  him— How  over- 
thrown— Punishment  of  Sophia — Death  of  John. 

The  death  of  the  Czar  Alexis,  in  1677,  left  the  affairs 
of  the  empire  in  great  confusion.  He  left  two  sons, 
Theodore  and  Iwan  or  John,  and  four  daughters  by 
his  first  wife.  The  oldest  of  these  daughters,  Sophia, 
is  the  only  one  of  which  I  shall  have  much  occasion 
to  speak. 

By  his  second  wife,  of  whose  marriage  I  have  just 
told  you,  he  left  one  son,  Peter,  the  hero  of  our  story, 
and  one  daughter,  whose  name  was  Natalia. 

Theodore,  the  oldest  son,  became  Czar  of  Russia 
at  the  age  of  fifteen.  He  was  a  weak  and  sickly 
prince,  but  of  a  mind  far  superior  to  his  body.  The 
second  son,  Iwan  or  John,  was,  as  Voltaire  says,  still 
worse  treated  by  nature  than  his  brother  Theodore, 


PEEER   THE   GREAT.  23 

being  almost  blind  and  dumb,  very  infirm,  and  fre- 
quently attacked  with  convulsions. 

It  was  a  rare  thing  for  the  daughters  of  the  Czar 
to  marry,  but  they  were  generally  sent  to  pass  their 
lives  in  a  monastery.  A  retirea  life  like  this,  how- 
ever, had  no  claims  for  the  Princess  Sophia,  who  was 
ambitious  and  fond  of  power,  and  determined,  if  pos- 
sible, to  leave  the  convent,  and  place  herself  at  the 
head  of  the  Government. 

She  saw  that  both  of  her  elder  brothers  were  weak 
and  sickly,  and  supposed  that  neither  of  them  would 
live  long,  and  that  if  they  did  they  would  be  unable 
to  govern  the  empire  •  and  to  the  young  half-brother, 
Peter,  she  gave  no  thought,  for  the  children  of  second 
marriages  were  of  little  account  in  Russia,  and  no 
one  dreamed  that  Peter  would  ever  come  to  the 
throne. 

In  order  to  carry  out  her  plan,  she  sent  an  earnest 
message  to  the  ministers,  telling  them  of  her  great 
anxiety  about  her  brother  Theodore,  to  whom  she 
pretended  to  be  strongly  attached,  and  begging  to  be 
allowed  to  leave  the  convent,  and  take  her  place  be- 
side his  sick  bed,  that  she  might  nurse  him  as  only  a 
sister  could. 

The  request  was  granted.  She  left  the  convent, 
and  immediately  set  herself  to  work,  by  every  art  she 
could  employ,  to  raise  herself  to  the  throne.      She 


24  THE   HISTORY   OP 

showed  the  utmost  tenderness  and  affection  to  her  suf- 
fering brother,  she  treated  all  persons  about  the  Court 
with  great  attention,  and  so  conducted  as  to  make  her- 
self a  universal  favorite. 

To  aid  her  in  her  ambitious  views,  she  chose  a 
man  as  artful  and  cunning  as  herself,  for  the  head  of 
her  party.  This  was  the  Prince  Galitzin ;  and  these 
two  persons  actually  governed  the  empire  during  the 
reign  of  Theodore,  whose  life  of  suffering  was  ended 
in  1682,  in  the  twenty-second  year  of  his  age. 

Knowing  that  his  brother  Iwan,  or  John,  was 
utterly  unfit  to  reign,  Theodore  was  advised  to  appoint 
as  his  successor,  his  young  brother  Peter,  who,  though 
only  ten  years  of  age,  had  already  showed  himself  to 
be  possessed  of  a  strong  mind  and  manly  character. 

At  this  Sophia  was  greatly  enraged,  her  hope 
having  been  that  John  would  have  been  appointed 
successor  to  Theodore,  in  which  case  she  knew  that 
she  could  continue  sovereign  of  the  empire,  as  she 
now  was  in  every  thing  but  name.  Sophia  now  set 
about  raising  an  insurrection  among  the  Strelitzes,  or 
Guards,  an  undisciplined  body  of  thirty  thousand 
soldiers,  who  kept  the  Czars  in  subjection,  and  as 
Yoltaire  says,  were  more  formidable  to  their  masters 
than  their  neighbors. 

She  engaged  in  her  services  the  General  Couvan- 
ski,  who  was  at  the  head  of  the  Strelitzes,  and  in 


PETER   THE   GREAT.  25 

order  to  enrage  the  people,  she  took  care  to  have  the 
story  spread  about  that  the  Czar  Theodore  had  come 
to  his  death  by  poison.  The  Strelitzes  were  called 
together,  speeches  were  made  to  excite  them  to  fury, 
and  two  days  after  Theodore  was  laid  in  his  grave, 
the  city  of  Moscow  was  a  scene  of  riot  and  bloodshed. 

The  Strelitzes  began,  as  an  excuse  for  their  insur- 
rection, by  accusing  nine  of  their  colonels  of  keeping 
back  their  pay,  and  insisted  upon  having  these  nine 
men  delivered  up  to  them.  A  sort  of  Lynch  Law 
now  ruled  among  this  savage  gang,  and  after  holding 
a  pretended  court,  they  sentenced  these  officers  to 
suffer  the  Battogues  or  knout. 

This  was  a  cruel  and  terrible  punishment,  the  suf- 
ferer being  thrown  upon  his  breast,  and  fastened  in  that 
position,  while  his  bare  back  was  beaten  with  rods,  till, 
when  it  seemed  likely  that  the  man  could  endure  no 
more,  he  was  released ;  and  (which  must  have  added 
greatly  to  his  indignation)  he  was  then  obliged  to 
rise,  and  with  his  back '  bleeding  and  sore  from  the 
beating  he  had  received,  humbly  thank  those  who  had 
been  so  kind  as  to  inflict  the  punishment  upon  him. 

And  now,  blood  having  begun  to  flow,  the  people 
seemed  like  thirsty  tigers,  seeking  in  all  directions 
for  objects  upon  which  to  exercise  their  cruelty. 
Physicians  were  seized  and  murdered,  and  if  they 
declared  that  they  had  not  been  near  the  Czar  Theo- 
2 


26  THE   HISTORY    OF 

dore,  the  reply  was,  "  Well,  you  are  a  physician,  and 
if  you  did  not  poison  our  master  Theodore,  you  have 
poisoned  others,  and  therefore  merit  death." 

At  length  they  found  a  Dutch  physician,  who  had 
been  accused  by  the  party  of  Sophia  of  poisoning 
the  Czar.  He  was  attempting  to  escape,  disguised  as 
a  beggar,  but  being  recognized,  he  was  dragged  before 
the  palace. 

The  young  princesses,  Theodore's  sisters,  loved 
this  good  man,  and  gathering  around  him,  they 
begged  the  Strelitzes  to  spare  his  life.  "  He  is  a 
good  man,"  they  said,  "  and  a  wise  physician,  and  he 
took  the  best  possible  care  of  our  brother  Theodore." 

But  the  guards  replied  that  he  deserved  to  die,  as 
a  physician,  and  also  as  a  sorcerer,  for  they  had  found 
the  skin  of  a  serpent,  and  a  great  dried  toad  in  his 
house ;  and  thus  he  was  put  to  death  before  the  eyes 
of  the  young  princesses. 

And  now  the  enraged  mob  began  to  search  every 
where  for  the  family  of  Nariskin,  to  whom  the  mother 
of  Peter  belonged,  as  this  family  were  much  hated  by 
the  Princess  Sophia,  who  was  determined  on  their 
destruction. 

The  whole  family,  including  John  and  Peter,  fled 
to  the  Trinity  Convent,  which  was  about  fifteen 
leagues  from  Moscow,  and  was  at  the  same  time,  a 
convent,  a  palace,  and  a  fortress.     To  this  place  they 


PETER   THE   GREAT.  27 

were  followed  by  the  bloodthirsty  soldiers,  some  of 
whom  dashed  after  them  into  the  convent. 

Peter  and  his  mother  took  refuge  near  the  altar, 
where  two  of  the  soldiers  found  them.  One  of  these 
raised  his  sword  to  strike  Peter  down,  when  his  com- 
panion stayed  his  hand,  exclaiming,  "  Comrade  !  not 
before  the  altar !  "  and  thus  because  of  the  man's 
religious  prejudices,  rather  than  because  of  any  feel- 
ings of  mercy  or  humanity,  the  life  of  Peter  was 
saved. 

But  the  work  of  death  and  destruction  went  on. 
All  who  were  marked  out  as  not  in  favor  with  Sophia 
were  seized.  Several  officers  of  the  Court  were  thrown 
from  the  balustrade  or  windows  of  the  palace,  and 
received  on  the  pikes  of  the  soldiers.  For  some  time 
they  searched  in  vain  for  John  Nariskin,  the  uncle  of 
Peter,  upon  whose  death  Sophia  was  determined, 

At  length,  they  found  that  he  was  really  in  the 
palace,  and  demanded  that  he  should  be  brought  out  to 
them,  or  they  would  burn  the  palace  to  the  ground. 
The  sister  of  Nariskin,  who  was  the  mother  of  Peter, 
and  the  other  princesses,  terrified  nearly  to  death  by  the 
violent  conduct  of  the  soldiers,  went  to  John,  in  the 
place  where  he  was  concealed,  and  told  him  of  the 
threats  of  the  mob,  upon  hearing  which  he  determined 
to  deliver  himself  up  to  their  power. 

The  Patriarch  was  sent  for,  who  recived  his  con- 


28  THE   HISTORY   OF 

fession,  and  administered  the  last  rites  of  his  religion, 
as  he  would  to  a  dying  person,  and  then,  placing  in 
his  hand  an  image  of  the  Virgin,  he  led  him  forth  to 
the  cruel  and  savage  mob. 

The  princesses  in  tears  gathered  round  him,  fall- 
ing on  their  knees  before  the  soldiers,  and  begging 
for  the  life  of  their  relative ;  but  the  wretches  dragged 
him  from  them,  to  the  foot  of  the  stairs,  where  they 
held  a  kind  of  mock  trial,  and  condemned  him  to  the 
death  of  the  "  ten  thousand  slices."  This  terribly 
cruel  mode  of  torture  is  inflicted  by  first  cutting 
off  the  hands  and  feet,  and  then  gradually  cutting  the 
body  into  small  pieces. 

After  ihus  brutally  slaying  Nariskin,  before  the 
eyes  of  the  princesses,  they  placed  his  head,  hands 
and  feet,  together  with  those  of  the  Dutch  physician 
who  had  attended  the  Czar,  upon  the  iron  points  of 
the  balustrade. 

In  the  mean  time  the  work  of  death  was  going  on 
in  other  places,  but  the  heart  sickens  in  describing 
these  scenes  of  blood  and  horror.  Suffice  it  to  say 
that  all  who  were  hated  by  Sophia  were  put  to  death, 
and  in  the  end,  the  two  princes,  John  and  Peter,  were 
declared  sovereigns  of  Russia,  and  Sophia  Regent,  by 
which  title  she  actually  reigned  over  the  empire. 

Her  first  act  was  to  reward  the  murderers  who 
had  put  those   she  hated  out  of  the  way,  by  giving 


PETER  THE   GEEAT.  29 

them  the  estates  of  their  victims,  and  publicly  thank- 
ing them  for  their  zeal  and  fidelity  in  her  service. 

The  end  of  this  wicked  woman  was  now  obtained ; 
and  seated  between  an  idiot  and  a  child,  she  enjoyed 
all  the  honors  of  a  sovereign.  Her  bust  was  stamped 
on  all  the  public  coin,  she  held  the  first  place  at  the 
council,  and  enjoyed  power  without  control.  She 
was  a  woman  of  great  understanding,  and  some  wit ; 
made  verses  in  the  Russian  language,  and  both  spoke 
and  wrote  extremely  well,  added  to  which  her  ap- 
pearance and  manners  were  very  agreeable. 

After  these  troubles  were  quieted,  the  General 
Couvanski,  whom  Sophia  had  used  as  her  instrument 
in  raising  the  insurrection  among  the  Strelitzes,  not 
finding  her  as  grateful  as  he  could  wish,  formed  a  plot 
to  destroy  the  whole  royal  family.  It  is  said  by 
some  that  he  wished  to  marry  Sophia,  (who,  he  knew, 
would  oppose  this  plan,)  and  determined  to  murder 
all  her  family  but  herself :  by  others  it  is  said,  that 
as  she  would  not  marry  him,  or  reward  him  as  he 
wished,  he  intended  to  murder  her  with  the  rest. 

All  agree,  however,  that  the  whole  family  fled 
once  more  to  the  Convent  of  the  Trinity,  where,  after 
they  were  safely  concealed,  Sophia  managed  to  decoy 
Couvanski  within  the  walls,  when  he  was  immediately 
seized  and  beheaded,  with  all  the  ofiicers  who  accom- 
panied him. 


30  THE   HISTORY   OF 

Now  the  Strelitzes  flew  to  arms  and  marched  to 
attack  the  convent,  threatening  to  destroy  every  thing 
that  came  in  their  way.  The  Imperial  family,  with 
the  Boyards,  and  many  gentlemen  who  flocked  into 
the  fortress,  stood  upon  their  defence.  The  Strelitzes 
now  having  lost  their  leader,  and  seeing  so  strong  a 
force  opposed  to  them,  became  frightened,  and  laid 
down  their  arms,  and  their  fury  changed  into  the  most 
abject  terror. 

Three  thousand  seven  hundred  of  this  body  of 
men,  followed  by  their  wives  and  children,  with  ropes 
tied  round  their  necks,  went  in  procession  to  the  Con- 
vent of  the  Trinity,  which  they  had  just  before  threat- 
ened to  burn  to  the  ground. 

Before  the  gate  of  the  convent  these  frightened 
wretches  presented  themselves,  walking  two  by  two, 
one  carrying  a  block  and  another  an  axe,  and  throw- 
ing themselves  upon  the  ground  waited  for  their  sen- 
tence. To  their  surprise  they  were  pardoned,  and  re- 
turned back  to  Moscow  blessing  their  sovereigns. 
"  And  still  disposed,"  as  Voltaire  remarks,  "  though 
unknown  to  themselves,  to  commit  the  same  crime 
upon  the  very  first  opportunity." 

The  only  other  events  of  any  importance  that  I 
find  to  have  happened  while  Sophia  ruled  the  em- 
pire as  Regent,  are  an  expedition  against  the  Tartars 
of  the  Crimea,  headed  by  Galitzin,  which,  in  conse- 


PETER  THE  GREAT.  31 

quence  of  the  ill- regulated  state  of  his  army,  utterly 
failed,  and  the  plot  against  the  life  of  the  young  Czar, 
of  which  I  will  presently  tell  you. 

Peter  was  now  seventeen  years  of  age,  and  began 
to  show  the  intention  of  taking  upon  himself  the  real 
sovereignty  of  the  empire.  This,  of  course,  Sophia 
was  determined  to  prevent,  if  possible.  According 
to  most  historians  of  that  time,  her  plans  had  all  been 
laid  with  reference  to  keeping  her  young  brother  in 
ignorance,  and  making  him  as  wicked  as  possible. 

It  is  said  that  she  kept  him  surrounded  by  a  set 
of  the  lowest  and  most  wicked  young  men  in  the 
kingdom,  who  led  him  into  every  excess,  and  that  his 
time  was  spent  in  idleness,  in  drinking,  and  without 
instruction  or  good  influences  around  him.  Others 
deny  this,  and  say  that  he  was  under  the  guardian- 
ship of  his  mother,  while  Sophia  contented  herself 
with  the  training  of  her  brother  John. 

At  the  age  of  seventeen  Peter  married,  in  opposi- 
tion to  the  wishes  of  Sophia.  This  enraged  her  be- 
yond all  bounds,  and  now,  with  the  aid  of  Galitzin, 
she  formed  a  plot  to  murder  her  brother,  and  engaged 
six  hundred  of  the  Strelitzes  to  seize  on  his  person. 
Again  Peter  fled  to  the  Convent  of  the  Trinity,  and 
so  large  and  powerful  a  body  of  followers  gathered 
round  him,  that  the  party  of  Sophia  were  completely 
subdued,  and  from  this  time  her  power  over  the  em- 
pire was  gone. 


32  THE   HISTORY   OF 

Dreadful  punishments  were  inflicted  upon  those  of 
her  party  who  were  seized.  Some  were  condemned  to 
suffer  by  the  knout  or  battogues ;  others  had  their 
tongues  cut  out ;  some  were  banished,  and  Sophia  her- 
self was  sent  back  to  a  monastary  at  Moscow,  where 
she  remained  shut  up  till  the  time  of  her  death,  fifteen 
years  afterwards.  This  must  have  been  the  worst 
punishment  that  could  have  been  inflicted  upon  one 
so  fond  of  admiration  and  power  as  the  Princess  So- 
phia. 

The  weak  and  sickly  Prince  John  did  not  pretend 
to  have  any  thiog  to  do  with  the  Government,  but 
spent  his  short  life  in  retirement,  and  died  in  1696, 
some  years  before  the  death  of  his  sister  Sophia. 


PETER   THE   GREAT.  33 


CHAPTER  III. 


The  Title  of  Czar— Peter's  Personal  Appearance — Habits— Dread  of 
Water— The  Old  Bark— Beginning  of  the  Russian  Navy — The  Czar  a 
Sailor — His  efforts  to  raise  a  Disciplined  Army — The  Czar  a  Soldier — 
Le  Port — His  Influence  over  the  Czar. 


Peter  the  First  was  now  Czar  of  Russia.  This 
title  of  Czar,  as  I  should  have  mentioned  before,  was 
first  assumed  by  one  of  the  Emperors  of  Russia  in 
the  Sixteenth  century,  upon  his  conquering  the  king- 
dom of  Casan,  now  in  the  Eastern  part  of  Russia,  the 
Princes  of  that  kingdom  having  been  distinguished  by 
the  title  of  Czar. 

The  Pope  of  Rome,  it  is  said,  strongly  objected 
to  this  title  being  taken  by  the  Emperor  of  Russia, 
as  it  sounded  rather  too  much  like  Ccesar,  the  name 
of  the  Roman  Emperors.  But  it  seems  the  opinions 
of  the  Pope  on  that  subject  made  little  difference. 

Peter  is  said  to  have  been  tall  and  finely  formed, 
with  a  handsome  face  and  piercing  eyes.  He  was, 
when  in  a  pleasant  mood,  lively,  cheerful,  and  sociable, 


34  THE   HISTORY    OF 

but  if  any  thing  happened  to  excite  his  anger,  he  was 
extremely  violent,  and  the  expression  of  his  face  be- 
came disagreeable  from  its  severity. 

He  had  a  strong  frame  and  a  constitution  of  iron, 
which  fitted  him  for  all  manner  of  toil  and  hardship. 
Through  the  greater  part  of  his  life  he  was  fond  of 
eating  and  drinking  to  excess,  but  in  his  latter  years 
he  entirely  conquered  these  bad  habits,  and  became 
exceedingly  plain  and  simple  in  his  diet. 

Even  Voltaire,  who  in  every  thing  seems  to  look  on 
the  bright  side  of  the  character  of  Peter,  makes  this 
acknowledgment :  "  The  pleasures  of  the  table,  in 
which  he  indulged  himself  rather  too  freely  with  for- 
eigners, who  had  been  invited  to  Moscow  by  Prince 
Gralitzin,  seemed  not  to  presage  that  he  would  one 
day  become  the  reformer  of  his  country ;  however,  in 
spite  of  bad  examples,  and  even  the  allurements  of 
pleasure,  he  applied  himself  to  the  arts  of  war  and 
government,  which  even  then  showed  that  he  had  the 
seeds  of  greatness  in  him." 

His  dread  of  water  in  the  early  part  of  his  life 
was  extreme,  and  its  effects  much  like  those  of  hydro- 
phobia, throwing  him  into  cold  sweats,  and  sometimes 
into  convulsions,  when  obliged  to  cross  even  a  small 
stream  or  brook.  The  cause  of  this  horrorjof  water 
is  said  to  have  been  this  : 

One  day,  when  he  was  four  or  five  years  old,  he  was 


PETER   THE   GREAT.  35 

lying  asleep  in  his  mother's  lap  in  a  carriage,  and 
when  they  were  crossing  a  bridge,  the  sound  of  a  wa- 
ter-fall suddenly  woke  the  child,  and  its  rushing  noise 
had  such  an  effect  upon  him  as  to  throw  him  almost 
into  convulsions,  and  afterwards  into  a  fever.  It  was 
probably  owing  to  this  cause  that  he  was  subject 
through  life  to  twitchings  and  contortions  of  the  face, 
and  when  much  excited  was  thrown  into  convulsions. 
It  is  quite  remarkable  that  one  who  had  such  a 
dread  of  water,  should  have  become  one  of  the  best 
seamen  of  his  time.  The  strength  of  his  character  is 
shown  in  his  determination  to  conquer  this  fear,  and 
great  as  the  effort  must  have  been,  he  began  by 
plunging  into  the  water,  till  at  length  he  overcame 
his  fear,  and  became  very  fond  of  it. 

There  is  a  river  which  runs  through  the  City  of 
Moscow,  upon  which  Peter  saw  at  one  time,  a  little, 
old,  neglected  bark,  which  had  been  built  by  a  Dutch- 
man by  the  name  of  Brandt ;  whom  the  Czar  Alexis, 
the  Father  of  Peter,  had  invited  into  Russia.  Peter 
noticed  that  this  bark  was  very  different  from  the  flat 
pontoons,  the  only  kind  of  boats  he  had  ever  seen, 
and  inquired  of  Timmerman,  one  of  his  teachers, 
"  Why  it  was  so  unlike  other  vessels  ?  " 

The  answer  was,  that  it  was  built  to  go  with  sails 
and  oars,  and  to  sail  against  the  wind.  There  was 
something  new  in  this,  and  the  curiosity  of  the  young 


36  THE   HISTORY    OF 

Czar  was  always  excited  by  any  thing  new  or  strange. 
He  immediately  sent  for  Brandt,  the  builder  of  the 
boat,  and  desired  him  to  repair  and  rig  this  little 
vessel,  and  teach  him  to  sail  her  on  the  Yausa;  a 
river  on  the  outskirts  of  Moscow.  Peter  was  perfect- 
ly delighted  at  seeing  the  vessel  sail,  and  soon  learned 
to  manage  her  himself. 

He  now  had  his  little  boat  removed  to  a  great 
lake  near  the  Convent  of  the  Trinity  ;  and  for  a  while 
delighted  in  sailing  her  there  :  but  soon  the  limits  of 
this  lake  were  too  small  for  him,  and  he  longed  to  see 
a  ship  sail  on  the  wide  Ocean.  Nothing  would  con- 
tent him  now,  but  to  remove  to  the  port  of  Archangel, 
where  he  had  another  small  vessel,  built  by  the  same 
Brandt,  and  embarked  upon  the  frozen  sea,  which  no 
monarch  but  himself  had  ever  seen. 

This  was  the  small  beginning  of  the  Russian 
Navy.  Soon  after  this,  Peter  ordered  Brandt  to 
build  two  more  frigates,  and  three  yachts,  which  he 
piloted  himself.  His  delight  in  sailing  became  a  per- 
fect passion,  and  he  often  exposed  himself  to  great 
danger.  When  the  storms  raged,  and  the  waves 
broke  over  his  vessel,  and  his  crew  became  frightened, 
he  would  say  to  them,  "  Never  fear,  the  Czar  Peter 
cannot  be  drowned.  Did  you  ever  hear  of  a  Russian 
Czar  having  perished  on  the  water  ?  " 

At  Archangel,  Peter  became  intimate  with  a  Dutch 


PETER   THE    GREAT.  37 

skipper  of  the  name  of  Musch,  and  frequently  went 
to  sea  in  his  vessel.  One  day  he  told  Musch  that  he 
wished  to  begin  at  the  lowest  grade,  and  go  through 
all  the  steps  necessary  to  make  a  good  seaman.  Musch 
thought  the  Czar  must  be  in  jest ;  but  he  assured  him 
that  so  far  from  that,  he  wished  to  go  to  sea  with  him 
the  very  next  day,  and  begin  and  go  through  every 
duty  of  the  sailor's  life. 

It  must  have  been  a  strange  sight  to  see  the  Caar 
of  Russia,  laboring  first  as  zwabber,  or  common  drudge 
—sweeping  the  cabin,  and  washing  the  decks.  Then 
when  ordered  to  the  post  of  servant,  lighting  and 
keeping  up  the  fire — attending  to  the  skipper's  pipe, 
and  brushing  his  clothes ;  and  then  as  cabin-boy,  wait- 
ing on  table,  and  mixing  the  grog. 

Now  having  served  in  all  these  lower  capacities, 
he  was  prepared  to  begin  the  duties  of  seamanship. 
He  first  began  here  as  Tong  Matroos  or  Young 
Sailor,  and  when  ordered  by  the  captain,  went  aloft, 
loosed,  or  reefed  the  sails,  and  did  whatever  he  was 
ordered  to  do.  Musch  was  now  greatly  frightened 
when  he  saw  the  young  Czar  running  up  the  shrouds, 
lest  he  should  fall  and  break  his  neck. 

It  must  have  been  an  amusing  sight  to  see  this 
poor  Captain  Musch,  obliged  by  the  Czar  to  order 
him  to  perform  these  duties  of  a  common  sailor,  and 


38  THE   HISTORY    OF 

then  standing  in  fear  and  trembling  to  see  him  execute 
those  orders. 

In  all  this  Peter's  object  was  to  teach  his  officers, 
who  were  as  ignorant  as  himself  of  all  the  arts  of 
navigation,  that  it  was  necessary  to  begin  at  the  lowest 
grade,  in  order  to  understand  it  well ;  and  to  prevent 
complaining,  and  murmuring,  he  set  them  the  example, 
by  taking  the  lowest  rank  himself. 

The  skipper  Musch  died  shortly  after  this,  and 
Peter  sent  his  widow  a  present  of  a  handsome  sum  of 
money  for  her  support.  Another  anecdote  told  of  the 
Czar,  shows  him  in  an  amiable  point  of  view ;  and 
on  all  such  stories  I  am  glad  to  seize  and  repeat  them 
to  you,  as  I  shall  have  enough  hard  things  to  tell  of 
Peter  by-and-by. 

One  day  when  out  at  sea  in  a  terrible  storm,  Peter 
became  unusually  anxious,  and  thinking  that  he  could 
manage  the  vessel  better  than  the  pilot,  he  tried  to 
take  hold  of  the  tiller,  and  teach  him  how  to  steer. 
The  pilot  was  vexed  at  this,  and  exclaimed  angrily  : 
"  Stand  out  of  my  way !  I  must  know  better  than 
you,  how  to  steer  the  vessel !  " 

He  piloted  the  vessel  safely  through  a  dangerous 
pass  among  the  rocks,  and  then  remembering  how  he 
had  spoken  to  the  Czar,  he  was  overwhelmed  with 
confusion,  and  falling  at  his  feet  he  humbly  begged 
forgiveness  for  his  madness. 


PETER   THE   GREAT.  39 

"  There  is  nothing  to  forgive,"  replied  Peter;  "  I 
owe  you  my  thanks,  not  alone  for  my  rescue  from 
danger,  but  also  for  the  proper  rebuke  you  gave  me." 

He  then  made  the  pilot  a  present,  and  settled  on 
him  a  small  pension. 

Peter  saw  the  necessity  of  placing  a  fleet  upon 
the  river  Volga,  to  keep  the  Tartars  and  Turks  in 
awe  on  the  South,  and  another  on  Lake  Ladoga,  and 
the  Gulf  of  Finland,  to  protect  his  territories  from 
his  powerful  neighbors  the  Swedes.  He,  therefore, 
kept  up  this  passion  for  sailing  as  much  from  necessity 
as  choice. 

At  one  time  he  invited  a  party  of  foreign  ministers 
to  accompany  him  in  his  yacht  on  a  water  party  to 
Cronstadt  to  see  his  fleet,  then  ready  for  sea,  when  a 
sudden  and  violent  thunder-storm  arose,  and  the 
waves  dashed  furiously  against  the  little  vessel. 

The  ministers  were  terribly  frightened,  and  begged 
Peter  to  put  back,  or  at  least  to  run  into  some  port 
and  allow  them  to  land.  Peter  appeared  perfectly 
calm,  and  stood  directing  the  pilot  and  other  oflicers 
how  to  work  the  vessel. 

One  of  the  ministers  now  approached  him,  saying, 
"I  beg  your  majesty,  for  the  love  of  God,  to  return 
to  St.  Petersburg,  or  to  land  me  somewhere,  and  not 
to  forget  that  my  court  did  not  send  me  to  Russia  to 
be  drowned.     If  I  should  perish  here,  which  in  all 


40  THE   HISTOKY    OF 

likelihood  I  shall,  your  majesty  will  have  to  answer 
to  the  king,  my  master." 

Though  really  surrounded  by  dangers,  the  Czar 
could  not  help  smiling,  as  he  answered  : 

"  Sir,  if  you  are  drowned,  we  shall  also  share  the 
same  fate,  and  then  no  one  will  be  left  to  answer  for 
your  excellency." 

After  the  same  manner  that  he  had  adopted  in 
forming  a  navy,  did  Peter  endeavor  to  raise  a  well- 
disciplined  body  of  troops,  on  whom  he  might  depend 
on  land.  This,  like  his  first  efforts  in  sailing  on  the 
lake,  near  Trinity  Convent,  was  looked  upon  only  as 
an  idle  amusement  of  the  Czar.  It  happened  during 
the  time  that  Sophia  was  regent,  and  had  she  sus- 
pected his  real  object,  he  might  not  have  been  allowed 
to  go  on  so  successfully  as  he  did,  with  his  plans  for 
raising  an  army. 

In  these  attempts  he  was  aided  by  Mr.  Francis 
Le  Fort,  who  was  the  son  of  a  merchant  of  Geneva, 
Switzerland.  In  his  youth  he  had  been  a  cadet,  and 
had  served  in  the  army.  He  accompanied  a  German 
colonel  to  Russia,  with  a  small  body  of  troops  which 
he  had  raised  in  the  Netherlands  and  brought  to  Arch- 
angel, having  been  requested  to  do  so  by  the  Czar 
Alexis,  the  father  of  Peter. 

When  they  arrived  there,  however,  Alexis  was 
dead;    the  Government  of  Russia  was  changed,  and 


PETER   THE   GREAT.  41 

every  thing  was  in  confusion.  The  Governor  of  Arch- 
angel allowed  this  whole  troop  to  remain  a  long  time 
in  the  utmost  poverty  and  distress,  and  even  threat- 
ened to  send  them  into  the  extremity  of  Siberia,  upon 
which  every  man  was  obliged  to  take  care  of  himself. 

Le  Fort,  in  great  poverty  and  want,  found  his  way 
to  Moscow,  where  he  called  upon  the  Danish  resident, 
named  De  Horn,  who  made  him  his  secretary.  In 
company  with  De  Horn,  Peter  saw  and  was  much 
delighted  with  Le  Fort,  whom  he  immediately  took 
into  his  own  service,  giving  him  the  command  of  a 
company  of  foot. 

The  Czar  had  formed  the  design  of  breaking  up 
and  scattering  that  undisciplined  gang  of  men  the 
Strelitzes,  by  means  of  a  powerful  and  well-drilled 
army  which  he  hoped  to  raise,  and  this  secret  he  con- 
fided to  Le  Fort. 

Peter  had  a  country-seat,  which  was  called  Preob- 
baazinski,  and  here  he  began  by  forming  a  company  of 
fifty  of  his  youngest  servants ;  and  some  young  gentle- 
men, the  sons  of  Boyards,  or  noblemen,  were  chosen 
for  their  officers.  But  in  order  that  these  officers 
should  be  properly  trained,  Peter  set  them  an  example 
which  he  made  them  follow,  of  beginning  at  the  very 
lowest  rank,  and  going  through  the  different  grades, 
as  he  had  done  in  the  navy. 

Behold  Peter,  the  Czar  of  Kussia,  then,  acting  as 


42  THE   HISTORY    OF 

drummer  to  the  regiment,  and  then  as  private  soldier, 
and  afterwards  as  corporal,  sergeant,  and  ensign. 
When  did  the  world  ever  before,  or  since,  behold  a 
monarch,  who  thus  laid  aside  his  greatness,  and  de- 
meaned himself  so  far  as  rank  was  concerned,  for  the 
good  of  his  country. 

Thus  in  a  short  time  the  Czar  found  himself  sup- 
ported by  a  body  of  five  thousand  disciplined  troops, 
in  whom  he  knew  he  could  trust.  These  were  trained 
by  General  Patrick  Grordon,  an  able  officer  from  Scot- 
land. Le  Fort  undertook  to  raise  another  body  of 
twelve  thousand  men,  which  he  accomplished,  and  was 
rewarded  by  being  appointed  their  General. 

In  order  to  keep  these  troops  occupied,  and  in 
proper  training  in  time  of  peace,  Peter  caused  them 
to  be  exercised  in  sham  fights,  and  other  warlike  exer- 
cises. A  fort  was  erected,  which  one  party  was  to 
besiege  and  the  other  to  defend.  But  the  men  became 
so  much  engaged  in  these  encounters  that  they  forgot 
it  was  only  a  play,  and  fought  with  so  much  zeal  that 
several  were  wounded  on  both  sides,  and  Le  Fort 
himself  received  a  severe  wound. 

All  this  time  the  Czar  had  by  no  means  forgotten 
his  navy,  but  was  employing  foreigners  in  building 
vessels  with  which  he  intended  to  attack  Azof,  then 
in  possession  of  the  Tartars  of  the  Crimea.  Means 
were  taken  too,  to  raise  money  to  defray  all  these  in- 


PETER   THE   GREAT.  '  43 

creased  expenses  of  the  army  and  navy ;  and  by  fol- 
lowing the  advice  of  Le  Fort,  this  was  accomplished. 

The  influence  of  this  man,  Le  Fort,  over  the 
Czar  was  most  wonderful.  He  could  do  with  him 
what  no  other  man  could.  Often  when  some  of  the 
Boyards  or  noblemen  were  condemned  to  suffer  by 
the  knout,  or  to  lose  their  heads,  as  often  was  done 
for  very  slight  offences,  Le  Fort  would  present  him- 
self before  the  Czar,  and  beg  that  he  would  wait,  and 
think  the  matter  over  in  a  cooler  moment.  If  this 
did  not  succeed,  he  would  beg  him  to  strike  the  blow 
upon  himself,  rather  than  let  the  innocent  person 
suffer. 

In  this  way  many  a  life  was  spared,  and  many  a 
poor  man  was  saved  severe  and  undeserved  punish- 
ment. Of  course  Le  Fort  became  a  great  favorite 
with  the  Russians,  who  seemed  to  forget  that  he 
was  a  foreigner,  and  looked  upon  him  as  one  of  their 
own  countrymen. 


44  THE  HISTOBT   OF 


CHAPTER  IV. 


The  Pastry  cook's  boy— The  poisoning  plot  discovered — Peter's  separa- 
tion from  his  wife — The  siege  of  Azof — The  traitor  Jacob — The  tri- 
umphal procession — A  conspiracy — How  defeated — A  strange  plan  of 
the  Czar— The  Czar  in  Holland— The  curiosity  he  excited— His  dread 
of  a  crowd— His  rage  at  the  authorities  of  Zaandam. 


There  was  a  poor  family  living  on  the  banks  of  the 
Volga,  of  the  name  of  Menzikoff.  A  young  boy 
belonged  to  this  family,  who  seemed  to  be  of  a  most 
enterprising  disposition;  and  not  being  able  to  enjoy 
even  the  advantages  of  a  common  school  education  at 
home,  he  determined  to  set  out  for  Moscow,  and  try 
and  make  his  own  way  in  the  world. 

He  found  occupation  at  first  in  the  shop  of  a 
pastry  cook,  and  daily  walked  the  streets  of  Moscow 
with  a  basket  of  cakes  and  pies  upon  his  arm,  singing 
in  a  clear  sweet  voice,  and  to  a  tune  of  his  own  com- 
posing, as  he  offered  his  cakes  and  pies  for  sale. 

He  was  a  handsome  boy,  and  of  pleasant  manners, 
and  was  usually  surrounded  by  a  crowd,  who  soon 
emptied   his   basket.     He  was   one  day  noticed  by 


PETER   THE   GREAT.  45 

General  Le  Fort,  who  called  hiin  into  his  house,  and 
asked  him  if  he  would  sell  his  pies  and  his  basket. 

"  It  is  my  business  to  sell  pies,  sir,"  answered  the 
boy  pleasantly,  "  but  the  basket  is  my  master's,  and  I 
cannot  sell  it  without  his  leave."  The  General  was 
so  delighted  with  the  appearance  and  manner  of  the 
boy,  that  he  took  him  into  his  service,  and  soon 
called  the  attention  of  the  Czar  to  him.  Peter  was 
equally  delighted  with  the  boy,  and  begged  that  he 
might  enter  his  service  as  page. 

He  soon  became  a  very  great  favorite  with  his 
master,  who  took  him  on  all  his  journeys,  and  em- 
ployed him  often  on  his  secret  business.  There  is  a 
story  told,  that  to  this  boy  (at  the  time  he  was  in  the 
service  of  the  pastry  cook)  the  Czar  owed  his  life. 

Peter,  it  is  said,  dined  one  day  with  one  of  the 
discontented  Boyards,  who  had  determined  to  poison 
him.  Young  Menzikoff,  happening  to  be  in  the 
kitchen,  saw  a  white  powder  put  into  a  particular 
dish.  He  took  care  to  let  the'  Czar  know  what  he  had 
seen.  At  the  table,  when  Peter  was  urged  to  partake 
of  this  dish,  he  refused,  but  asked  the  nobleman  who 
had  invited  him,  to  try  it  himself. 

He  declined,  saying  that  it  was  not  proper  for  the 
servant  to  eat  with  his  master.  The  dish  was  then 
set  on  the  floor,  and  a  dog  who  was  near  was  called  to 
eat  of  it,  which  he  did,  and  immediately  died  in  con- 


46  THE   HISTORY    OF 

vulsions.  The  Boyard  was  seized,  but  was  soon  found 
dead  in  his  bed,  having  probably  put  an  end  to  him- 
self. 

This  pastry  cook's  boy  was  afterwards  Prince 
Alexander  Menzikoff,  and  rose  to  riches,  honor  and 
power. 

Peter  was  not  happy  in  his  first  marriage,  into 
which  he  had  been  forced  at  the  age  of  seventeen,  by 
the  principal  men  of  his  party.  His  wife  and  all  her 
family  had  a  great  horror  of  foreigners,  and  opposed 
all  the  improvements  Peter  wished  to  make,  thus  en- 
couraging the  party  who  were  in  opposition  to  the 
Czar. 

Before  he  was  twenty  years  old,  he  had  sent  her 
from  him,  and  ordered  her  to  be  strictly  confined  in  a 
convent.  She  was  allowed,  however,  to  retain  the 
guardianship  of  her  little  boy,  Alexis;  and  it  is  sup- 
posed that  the  misfortunes  of  his  after  life  were 
owing  to  the  training  he  received,  and  the  sentiments 
he  imbibed  from  his  mother. 

General  Le  Fort  was  given  the  rank  of  Admiral 
by  sea,  as  well  as  General  of  the  land  forces,  and  was 
sent  to  hasten  the  building  of  the  vessels  which  were 
to  sail  down  the  river  Don,  to  attack  Azof,  of  which 
place  the  Czar  was  determined  to  get  possession  if 
possible,  and  by  that  means  to  drive  the  Tartars  from 
the  Crimea. 


PETER   THE   GREAT.  47 

The  place  was  attacked  by  General  Gordon,  with 
five  thousand  men,  Le  Fort  with  twelve  thousand, 
and  other  companies  formed  from  the  Strelitzes  and 
Cossacks.  The  expected  vessels  which  were  to  attack 
Azof  by  sea  did  not  reach  the  place  in  time,  but  the 
Russians  were  too  impatient  to  wait.  They  besieged 
the  place,  but  were  driven  back  and  defeated,  owing, 
it  is  said,  to  the  desertion  and  treachery  of  one  of  the 
Czar's  lower  officers. 

This  man,  whose  name  was  Jacob,  having  been 
punished  by  his  General  for  some  fault,  determined 
on  revenge.  He  therefore  in  the  night  spiked  the 
guns  of  the  Russians,  and  then  deserted  to  the  enemy, 
and  was  active  in  defending  the  fortress  he  had  come 
to  attack. 

The  Czar,  though  beaten,  was  not  discouraged,  and 
the  next  spring  he  brought  a  large  force  by  sea  and 
land  against  Azof,  and  succeeded  in  taking  the 
city.  Peter  was  well  pleased  to  find  the  traitor 
Jacob  in  the  city.  It  would  seem  that  those  to  whom 
he  deserted  were  not  very  grateful  for  his  services,  for 
the  Governor  made  no  objection  to  delivering  him  up 
to  the  Czar,  with  the  rest  of  the  prisoners. 

The  Turks  and  Tartars  being  now  subdued,  Peter 
thought  it  best  to  allow  his  people  the  pleasure  of  a 
triumphal  show.  As  for  himself,  he  seems  to  have 
had  no  fondness  for  such  things,  but  kept  in  the  back- 


48  THE   HISTORY    OF 

ground,  and  took  rank  only  as  an  inferior  officer  in  the 
procession. 

The  army  entered  Moscow,  under  triumphal 
arches,  in  the  midst  of  superb  fireworks,  and  the 
firing  of  cannon,  and  ringing  of  bells ;  and  feasting, 
fireworks  and  illuminations  were  kept  up  for  several 
days  throughout  the  city. 

In  the  rear  of  the  grand  procession,  came  the 
captives  at  Azof,  and  last  of  all,  in  a  cart,  the  traitor 
Jacob,  with  an  executioner  on  each  side,  and  a  gal- 
lows over  his  head.  He  was  first  broken  on  the 
wheel,  and  then  hung,  with  a  label  on  his  breast, 
saying,  "This  wretch  has  five  times  changed  his  reli- 
gion, and  is  a  traitor  to  G-od  and  man." 

The  changes  which  the  Czar  was  constantly  intro- 
ducing into  the  kingdom,  and  the  favor  shown  to  for- 
eigners, so  enraged  the  party  already  opposed  to  him, 
particularly  the  officers  of  the  Strelitzes,  that  a  num- 
ber of  them  now  entered  into  a  conspiracy  to  put  the 
Czar  to  death. 

The  plan  was  to  set  fire  to  a  building  in  the  Krem- 
lin (a  palace  in  Moscow)  at  night,  and  when,  as  was 
certain  to  be  the  case,  the  Czar  appeared  upon  the 
spot,  two  of  these  men  were  to  seize  and  stab  him. 
The  plan  was  all  ready  for  execution  when  the  courage 
of  two  of  the  conspirators  gave  out,  and  they  went  to 
the  Czar  and  made  known  the  whole  plot. 


PETER   THE   GREAT.  49 

With  a  few  followers  he  immediately  started  for 
the  house  where  the  conspirators  were  assembled, 
seized  them,  had  them  executed,  and  fixed  their  heads 
on  spikes  of  iron,  as  a  warning  to  all  traitors. 

Peter  was  by  no  means  satisfied  to  think  that  all 
his  vessels  in  the  sea  of  Azof  had  been  built  by  for- 
eigners ;  he  wished  his  own  people  to  learn  the  art  of 
ship  building,  as  well  as  other  arts,  and  determined  to 
send  great  numbers  of  young  men  into  other  coun- 
tries, to  learn  to  build  and  sail  large  vessels;  and 
others  to  serve  in  the  land  forces,  that  they  might  be- 
come good  and  distinguished  soldiers. 

This  was  considered  a  terrible  thing  by  the  party 
who  were  opposed  to  all  changes.  It  was  a  new  thing 
for  a  Russian  to  leave  his  country,  and  the  priests  in 
particular  made  a  great  outcry  against  this  overthrow 
of  former  customs. 

But  the  Czar  Peter  now  determined  to  do  another 
thing,  which  caused  all  Russia  to  open  its  eyes  in  as- 
tonishment. 

This  was  to  leave  his  dominions,  and  go  himself 
into  other  countries  to  see  what  was  to  be  seen,  and  to 
learn  those  arts  of  which  his  own  people  were  igno- 
rant. And  moreover,  he  intended  to  learn  these  arts 
by  working  with  his  own  hands  as  a  day  laborer,  in 
the  ship-yards,  and  docks,  and  manufactories  of  other 
countries. 

3 


50  THE   HISTORY   OP 

"  Now  surely  our  Czar  has  gone  crazy  !  "  said  the 
people,  and  the  priests  exclaimed  that  for  the  Czar  to 
go  into  barbarous  parts,  (as  they  supposed  all  foreign 
countries  to  be,)  was  an  abomination  before  the  Lord, 
and  had  been  since  the  time  of  Moses,  and  was  con- 
trary to  their  holy  religion. 

All  this  had  little  influence  with  Peter,  whose 
mind  was  made  up,  and  in  the  same  year,  1697,  an 
embassy  of  two  hundred  persons,  headed  by  three 
ambassadors,  General  Le  Fort,  the  Governor  of  Si- 
beria, and  the  Secretary  of  State,  set  out  to  visit  other 
countries,  and  in  the  first  place,  Holland. 

In  this  company,  as  a  private  gentlemen,  travelled 
the  Czar,  attended  by  a  valet,  a  livery  servant  and  a 
dwarf,  for  without  one  of  these  little  creatures  the 
embassy  would  have  been  incomplete.  The  favorite, 
Menzikoff,  was  also  in  the  train.  As  they  passed 
through  Riga,  which  then  belonged  to  Sweden,  the 
Czar  requested  to  look  at  the  fortifications  of  the 
place. 

This  request  was  rudely  refused  by  Count  D'Al- 
berg,  the  Governor,  who  treated  the  embassy  with 
contempt  and  insult.  This  was  never  forgotten  by 
Peter,  and  you  will  see  he  afterwards  made  it  one  ex- 
cuse for  his  war  upon  the  Swedes. 

At  other  places  they  were  treated  with  great  hos- 
pitality, and  while  in  Germany  there  was  nothing  but 


PETER  THE    GEEAT.  51 

feasting  and  carousing.  The  tables  were  attended 
with  trumpets  and  music,  and  the  eating  and  drinking 
were  excessive. 

While  excited  by  wine,  at  one  of  these  feasts,  the 
Czar,  in  a  sudden  fit  of  passion,  drew  his  sword  upon 
Le  Fort  and  told  him  to  defend  himself.  "  Far  be  it 
from  me,"  replied  Le  Fort,  "  let  me  rather  perish  by 
the  hand  of  my  master."  Peter  was  immediately 
overcome  with  shame,  and  asked  pardon  of  his  kind 
and  useful  friend  for  having  so  far  forgotten  himself. 

"  My  great  desire  is  to  reform  my  subjects,"  said 
he,  "  and  yet,  I  am  ashamed  to  say,  I  cannot  govern 
myself." 

The  Czar  was  so  anxious  to  reach  the  village  of 
Zaandam,  or  Zaardam  as  it  is  now  called  (the  town 
from  which  the  skipper  Musch  had  gone),  and  where 
he  expected  to  learn  the  art  of  ship  building,  that  he 
left  the  embassy,  and  hastened  on  with  six  of  his  fol- 
lowers, reaching  that  place  fifteen  days  before  the  rest 
of  the  party. 

It  is  strange  that  the  first  person  seen  by  the  Czar 
was  a  man  of  the  name  of  Kist,  who  was  fishing  in  a 
little  boat,  and  who  had  worked  as  a  smith  in  Russia. 
This  man  was  at  once  recognized  by  some  of  the  Czar's 
party,  who  called  him  to  come  to  them. 

The  man  came,  wondering  who  these  strangers 
might  be,  and  we  can  well  imagine  his  astonishment 


52  THE   HISTOEY    OF 

when  lie  found  that  one  dressed  like  a  Dutch  skipper, 
in  a  red  jacket  and  white  trowsers,  was  the  Czar  of 
Russia.  Peter  told  the  man  he  wanted  to  take  lodg- 
ings, and  would  like  to  take  them  with  him. 

The  poor  man  did  not  know  what  to  say,  for  his 
house  was  a  small  and  poor  one,  and  he  would  have 
been  glad  to  excuse  himself.  He,  however,  found  a 
poor  widow  woman,  who  had  a  small  house  back  of 
his  own,  and  who  consented  to  remove  to  an  adjoining 
hut,  and  let  the  Czar  have  hers.  Peter's  lodgings 
now  were  two  small  rooms,  with  a  loft  over  them,  and 
a  shed  adjoining. 

Kist  promised  to  keep  the  secret  as  to  who  his 
new  neighbors  were,  and  when  a  crowd  collected 
around  them,  asking  curious  questions,  the  Czar,  who 
could  speak  Dutch,  replied  that  they  were  all  carpen- 
ters and  workmen  from  another  country,  who  had 
come  to  Zaandam  in  search  of  work. 

This  was  a  likely  story,  especially  as  some  of  the 
Czar's  followers  did  not  relish  the  idea  of  passing  for 
poor  day  laborers,  and  so  kept  on  their  own  rich  Rus- 
sian dresses.  Peter,  as  soon  as  he  arrived,  went  to 
find  the  widows  and  families  of  some  Dutch  ship 
builders  and  sailors  who  had  died  in  Russia,  repre- 
senting himself  as  a  fellow  workman  of  their  relations. 

The  wife  of  the  skipper  Musch  was  very  glad  to 
see  this  friend  of  her  dead  husband,  and  begged  him, 


PETER   THE    GEEAT.  53 

if  he  should  ever  see  the  Czar  of  Russia,  to  thank 
him  for  his  kindness  in  sending  her  the  money, 
of  which  she  had  been  much  in  need.  Peter  prom- 
ised that  the  Czar  should  certainly  receive  her  mes- 


And  now  the  Czar  was  ready  to  set  to  work,  and 
he  insisted  that  all  his  followers  should  clothe  them- 
selves in  the  common  dress  of  the  ship  docks.  On 
Sunday  crowds  would  come  from  Amsterdam,  which 
was  not  far  off,  to  see  these  strangers,  who,  wherever 
they  went,  were  followed  by  curious  eyes. 

This  was  very  annoying  to  the  Czar,  who  had  al- 
ways a  horror  of  a  crowd,  and  particularly  disliked 
being  stared  at.  His  secret  had  got  out,  however, 
through  letters  written  from  Dutchmen  who 'were  in 
Russia,  and  now,  wherever  Peter  went  he  was  pointed 
at,  and  one  said  to  another,  "  Dat  is  der  Czar ! " 

It  would  have  been  annoying  to  any  one  to  find, 
whenever  he  looked  out  from  his  door  on  Sundays  or 
holidays,  crowds  of  people  collected  about,  filling  all 
the  windows  and  house  tops,  and  patiently  waiting  to 
get  a  look  at  him.  The  poor  Czar  was  obliged  at  such 
times  to  shut  himself  up  in  his  little  hut,  till  the 
crowd,  becoming  discouraged,  went  away. 

Peter  now  began  to  work  in  earnest,  by  purchas- 
ing a  small  yacht,  and  fitting  a  new  bowsprit  to  her 
with  his  own  hands.     The  other  workmen  looked  on 


54  THE   HISTORY   OF 

with  astonishment,  to  see  so  great  a  person  working 
till  the  sweat  ran  from  his  face. 

He  spent  many  hours  a  day  in  sailing,  and  the 
quickness  of  his  movements  much  astonished  the 
Dutch,  who  said  they  had  never  seen  such  "  loopen, 
springen,  en  klauteren  over  de  schepen" — running, 
jumping,  and  clambering  over  the  shipping. 

Some  of  the  officers  and  distinguished  gentlemen 
of  the  town  one  day  politely  waited  on  the  Czar,  to 
request  him  to  honor  them  by  his  presence  to  witness 
the  dragging  of  a  ship  over  a  dam.  No  doubt  Peter 
would  have  been  glad  to  witness  this  sight,  as  he  was 
very  curious  to  see  all  things  new  or  strange,  but 
seeing  a  great  crowd  he  exclaimed,  "  te  veel  volks, 
te  veel  -volks," — "  too  many  people" — and  slammed 
the  door,  and  immediately  fell  into  one  of  those  con- 
vulsion fits  to  which  he  was  subject  when  in  a  violent 
passion. 


PETER   THE   GEEAT.  55 


CHAPTER   V. 

Peter  Bas  in  the  dock-yard  at  Zaandam— He  earns  a  pair  of  shoes— His 
curiosity — The  sound  tooth  extracted — He  goes  to  England — Learns 
various  trades — Annoyed  by  the  crowd — His  private  habits — Saye's 
court — How  the  Czar  left  it — The  call  at  the  palace — The  rough 
ruby. 

Let  us  enter  the  dock-yard  in  the  little  town  of 
Zaandam,  as  did  many  others  out  of  mere  curiosity  in 
the  days  of  which  I  am  writing.  Men  are  busy  on 
all  sides,  working  with  all  manner  of  tools,  on  the 
different  parts  of  vessels.  But  the  most  active  person 
in  the  yard  is  "  a  tall  and  robust  man,  quick  and  nim- 
ble of  foot,  and  rapid  in  his  actions ;  his  face  is  plump 
and  round ;  he  is  fierce  in  his  look,  and  has  brown  eye- 
brows and  short,  curling  hair,  of  a  brownish  color. 
His  gait  is  quick,  he  swings  his  arms  as  he  walks,  and 
always  holds  in  one  of  them  a  cane." 

This  cane  he  is  apt  to  use  rather  too  freely  upon 
any  one  who  is  in  his  way,  or  whose  conduct  does  not 
please  him.     But  to  his  overseers  he  is  perfectly  re- 


56  THE   HISTOEY   OF 

spectful  and  obedient,  doing  his  work  exactly  as  he  is 
ordered  to  do  it.  If  any  one  wishes  to  speak  to  him 
on  any  matter  of  importance,  he  leaves  his  work,  and, 
with  his  adze  in  his  hand,  goes  and  sits  down  on  a 
rough  log  of  timber  while  he  talks,  but  seems  impa- 
tient to  return  to  his  work  again. 

This  man  is  known  in  the  dock-yard  as  Peter  Zim- 
mermann,  or  Peter  Bas,  (Master  Peter.)  He  lends  a 
helping  hand  in  every  part  of  the  work  that  is  going 
on,  whether  it  be  ropemaking,  sailmaking,  or  smith's 
work. 

One  day  a  great  English  Duke  came  into  the 
dock-yard,  and  asked  the  master  to  point  out  to  him 
quietly  the  Czar,  as  he  wished  to  see  him  at  his  work. 
A  number  of  men  were  just  then  earring  a  heavy 
beam  by  the  spot  where  Peter  had  sat  down  for  a  mo- 
ment to  rest. 

"  Peter  Zimmermann ! "  called  out  the  master, 
"  why  don't  you  assist  those  men  ?  "  Peter  rose  at 
once,  and  placing  his  shoulder  under  the  beam,  helped 
to  carry  it  to  its  place. 

Whenever  he  went  where  labor  of  any  kind  was 
going  on,  he  insisted  upon  taking  hold  and  doing  part 
of  the  work  with  his  own  hands.  Thus  in  a  manu- 
factory at  Istia,  he  forged  several  bars  of  iron, 
making  his  Russian  followers  blow  the  bellows,  stir 
the  fire,  carry  coals,  and  do  the  work  of  the  journey- 


PETER  THE   GREAT.  57 

man  blacksmiths.  All  this  they  did  not  much  relish, 
but  pretended  that  it  was  only  play.  Peter  was  the 
only  one  who  worked  in  earnest. 

When  his  work  was  finished,  Peter  went  to  the 
master  and  demanded  his  pay.  "When  he  received  it, 
he  said,  "  This  will  buy  me  a  pair  of  shoes,  of  which  I 
am  much  in  need,"  showing  his  shoes  that  had  already 
been  mended.  He  took  his  money,  and  went  and 
bought  a  pair  of  shoes,  in  which  he  took  great  pleas- 
ure, as  having  been  earned  by  his  own  toil. 

"  See  my  new  shoes,"  he  would  say  to  his  compan- 
ions, "  I  have  earned  them  by  the  sweat  of  my  brow, 
with  hammer  and  anvil." 

His  followers  often  begged  off  from  work,  com- 
plaining of  their  sore  hands,  and  one  got  tired,  com- 
plained of  being  sick,  and  returned  to  Russia. 

When  the  ambassadors  from  Russia  reached  Am- 
sterdam, Peter  thought  it  right  to  leave  his  work  and 
take  his  place  in  the  procession,  which  was  a  very 
magnificent  one. 

First  came  the  three  ambassadors,  followed  by  a 
long  train  of  carriages,  with  richly-dressed  livery  ser- 
vants on  foot;  but  Peter,  in  the  simple  dress  of  a 
gentleman,  came  in  one  of  the  last  carriages,  which,  in 
Holland,  was  not  the  place  of  honor. 

All  this  pomp  and  show  were  very  disagreeable  to 
him,  and  he  was  doubtless  longing  to  return  to  the 


58  THE   HISTOEY    OF 

axe  and  saw,  which  lie  did  the  moment  the  ceremony 
was  ended.  Having  learned  the  art  of  ship-building, 
he  went  through  Holland,  determined  to  see  every 
thing  that  was  new. 

Now  he  is  to  "be  found  upon  the  Greenland  fishing 
ships,  a  hundred  of  which  are  in  the  harbor  of  Texel 
at  once.  Here  he  goes  from  one  part  of  the  ship  to 
another,  asking  numberless  questions  as  to  the  manner 
of  catching  the  whales,  boiling  the  oil,  taking  out  the 
whalebone,  and  every  thing  else  belonging  to  the 
whale-fishery.  Now  in  the  manufactories,  the  wind- 
mills, the  markets,  always  asking  questions,  and  never 
satisfied  till  he  knows  how  every  thing  is  done. 

The  moment  his  eye  lights  on  any  new  object, 
comes  the  eager  question,  "  Wat  is  dat?"  and  when 
he  is  told,  he  exclains  "Dat  wil  ik  zien  " — "I  will 
see  that."  In  his  curiosity,  he  sometimes  went  too 
near  the  machinery,  and  one  day  became  nearly  en- 
tangled, and  drawn  into  some  dangerous  machine. 
Another  time,  he  mounted  upon  an  immense  crane  on 
a  wharf  at  Amsterdam,  when  his  foot  slipped  to  the 
ground,  severely  injuring  his  leg. 

Now  he  is  to  be  found  in  the  hospitals,  learning 
to  draw  teeth,  to  let  blood,  and  to  dissect  bodies. 
Anxious  to  try  his  hand  at  some  of  these  surgical 
operations,  he  performed  upon  a  poor  woman  who  had 
the  dropsy.     As  might  have  been  expected,  she  died, 


PETER   THE   GEE  AT.  59 

and  the  Czar  consoled  the  mourning  husband,  by  pay- 
ing him  the  honor  of  attending  the  funeral. 

Peter  always  carried  with  him  a  case  of  instru- 
ments, and  was  rather  more  ready  to  operate  upon 
those  about  him  for  the  purpose  of  showing  his  skill, 
than  was  to  them  agreeable.  One  day  he  saw  his 
valet  sitting  with  a  sad  countenance,  and  asked  him 
what  was  the  matter; 

"  Nothing,  sire,"  he  answered,  "  except  that  my 
wife  is  suffering  with  the  toothache,  and  refuses  to 
have  it  out."  Now  the  fact  was  that  the  poor  woman 
had  not  the  toothache  at  all,  but  the  valet,  having 
become  angry  with  her  for  some  cause,  wished  to  be 
revenged,  and  knowing  that  the  Czar  would  never  be 
satisfied  if  there  was  a  tooth  to  be  drawn,  till  his 
pincers  were  upon  it,  he  took  this  means  of  having 
her  put  to  the  torture. 

"  If  she  has  the  toothache,"  said  the  Czar,  "  I 
will  soon  cure  her."  So  he  ordered  the  poor  woman 
to  sit  down,  she  all  the  time  insisting  that  she  had 
no  aching  tooth. 

"  Ah !  that  is  always  the  way  with  her,"  said  the  va- 
let, "  as  soon  as  the  doctor  comes ;  and  when  he  is  gone, 
she  is  whining  and  crying  again  with  the  toothache." 

"  Well,  we'll  soon  cure  her,"  said  the  Czar,  "  you 
hold  her  head  and  arms  ;  "  and  putting  the  pincers  in 
her  mouth,  he  pulled  out  a  perfectly  sound  tooth. 


60  THE   HISTORY   OP 

Peter  did  not  relish  the  idea  of  having  a  trick 
played  upon  him  more  than  any  one  else  would ;  and 
when  he  heard  how  his  valet  had  deceived  him,  he 
was  much  vexed,  and  called  him,  and  gave  him  a  good 
whipping  with  his  own  hands,  which  we  will  all  agree 
the  man  deserved. 

While  Peter  was  in  Holland,  he  was  cheered  by 
hearing  that  his  troops  at  home  had  gained  a  victory 
over  the  Tartars  near  Azof,  and  had  also  beaten  a 
body  of  Turkish  troops,  sent  by  the  Sultan  to  the 
assistance  of  the  Tartars. 

Having  now  seen  and  learned  all  the  knowledge 
that  Holland  had  to  offer,  the  Czar  next  turned  his  face 
towards  England,  still  travelling  as  a  private  gentle- 
man, in  the  train  of  his  ambassador.  King  William 
the  Third  sent  his  own  yacht  to  meet  him,  and  also 
two  ships  of  war.     This  was  in  the  year  1698. 

In  England,  as  at  Zaandam,  he  took  a  room  near 
the  dockyard,  that  he  might  be  able  to  give  his  whole 
time  to  gaining  instruction  in  the  English  manner  of 
ship-building.  He  soon  made  himself  quite  perfect 
in  this  business,  so  that  he  gave  lessons  to  others,  and 
began  to  build  a  ship  after  the  English  method,  which 
proved  to  be  a  first-rate  sailer. 

He  next  took  a  fancy  to  learn  the  art  of  watch- 
making, of  which,  in  a  short  time,  he  made  himself 


PETER   THE   GREAT.  61 

master.  The  more  we  see  of  this  remarkable  man, 
the  more  cause  we  have  to  wonder  at  his  astonishing 
industry  and  perseverance ;  and  at  the  ease  with  which 
he  acquired  every  art  to  which  he  turned  his 
hands. 

We  think  it  enough  for  one  man  to  learn  one 
branch  of  art  well,  even  where  it  is  necessary  for  his 
support ;  but  here  was  the  Czar  of  Russia,  who 
might,  if  he  chose,  have  lived  a  life  of  ease  and 
splendor,  travelling  from  country  to  country,  living 
in  poor,  mean  lodgings,  and  laboring  as  hard  as  the 
poorest  day-laborer,  first  at  one  trade,  then  at  another, 
and  according  to  the  historians  of  his  time,  making 
himself  perfect  in  all. 

Captain  Perry,  the  engineer,  who  went  with  him 
from  London  to  Russia,  says  that  "  from  the  casting 
of  cannon,  to  the  spinning  of  ropes,  there  was  not 
any  branch  of  trade  connected  with  ship-building 
that  he  did  not  minutely  observe,  and  even  put  his 
own  hand  to,  as  often  as  he  came  to  the  places  where 
those  trades  were  carried  on." 

Before  the  time  of  Peter,  the  only  mode  of  cal- 
culation of  which  they  knew  any  thing  in  Russia  was 
by  means  of  balls  strung  on  wires,  the  use  of  figures 
being  yet. unknown  in  that  country.  Peter  now 
engaged  persons  to   go   back   with   him   and   teach 


62  THE   HISTORY    OF 

arithmetic,  according  to  the  plan  taught  in  other 
countries. 

Before  he  left  England,  he  was  entertained  by 
King  William  with  an  exhibition  of  a  mock  sea  fight, 
with  which  he  was  much  delighted,  Little  did  the 
English  then  think  that  the  Czar,  who  was  then  looking 
for  the  first  time  at  any  thing  approaching  a  naval 
battle,  would  one  day  fight  with  his  powerful  enemies, 
the  Swedes,  and  gain  victories  in  the  Baltic. 

Peter  was  as  much  annoyed  with  the  crowds  he 
met  in  London,  and  the  curious  gaze  of  the  people,  as 
he  had  been  in  Holland.  They  would  come  into  his 
room  while  he  was  eating,  at  which  the  Czar  would 
rise  from  the  table,  and  rush  out  of  the  room,  in  a 
terrible  passion.  While  walking  along  the  Strand 
with  a  certain  Marquis,  a  porter  with  a  hod  on  his 
shoulder,  ran  against  the  Czar,  and  drove  him  into  the 
gutter. 

Peter  was  in  a  great  rage,  and  turned  to  knock 
him  down,  but  the  Marquis  interfered,  and  asked  the 
man  "  what  he  meant,  and  if  he  knew  it  was  the 
Czar,  against  whom  he  had  run  so  rudely  ?  " 

"  Czar!  "  said  the  man,  with  a  grin.  "  We  are  all 
Czars  here."  This  story  would  have  seemed  a  more 
likely  one,  if  it  had  been  told  of  one  of  our  indepen- 
dent Yankees. 

At  to  the  private  habits  of  the  Czar,  Voltaire 


PETER   THE   GREAT.  63 

preserves  a  strict  silence,  seeming  determined  to  say  as 
little  as  possible  that  is  not  in  favor  of  that  great 
personage.  I  find  by  others,  however,  and  I  suppose 
there  is  no  doubt  of  the  truth  of  it,  that  his  habits 
were  disgustingly  filthy ;  and  that,  at  this  time  of  his 
life,  he  was  a  "  glutton  and  a  wine-bibber,"  to  say 
nothing  of  beer  and  brandy. 

After  living  a  while  in  London,  Peter  expressed  a 
desire  to  be  near  some  of  the  King's  dockyards,  and 
a  beautiful  place  at  Deptford,  belonging  to  Mr. 
Evelyn,  called  "  Saye's  Court,"  was  taken  for  his 
residence,  and  that  of  his  followers.  This  was  near  a 
dock-yard,  through  the  wall  of  which  a  door  was 
broken,  that  the  Czar  might  easily  step  from  his  resi- 
dence into  the  yard. 

This  place  and  the  grounds  about  it  were  so  beau- 
tiful that  they  were  the  wonder  and  admiration  of  all 
men  of  taste  at  that  time.  There  were  splendid 
avenues,  and  fine  long  hedge-rows,  through  which  it 
was  the  pleasure  of  the  Czar  to  trundle  a  wheel-bar- 
row every  day. 

The  house  itself  was  very  elegant,  and  beauti- 
fully furnished ;  but  when  the  Czar  and  his  troop 
left  it,  all  was  ruin  and  desolation.  Mr.  Evelyn's 
servant  wrote  to  him  thus,  at  the  time  they  were 
there  : 


64  THE   HISTORY    OF 

"  There  is  a  house  full  of  people  right  nasty. 
The  Czar  lies  next  your  library,  and  dines  in  the 
parlor  next  your  study.  He  dines  at  ten  o'clock,  and 
at  six  at  night ;  is  very  seldom  at  home  a  whole  day; 
very  often  in  the  King's  yard,  or  by  water,  dressed 
in  several  dresses.  The  King  is  expected  there  this 
day.  The  best  parlor  is  pretty  clean  for  him  to  be 
entertained  in.     The  King  pays  for  all  he  has." 

Mr.  Evelyn  himself  speaks  of  "  My  ruined  garden 
at  Saye's  Court,  thanks  to  the  Czar  of  Muscovy ! " 
"When  the  Czar  and  his  party  had  finished  their  day's 
work,  they  would  resort  to  a  public  house  in  Great 
Tower  street,  to  smoke  their  pipes,  and  drink  beer 
and  brandy. 

He  went  very  little  into  company,  and  seldom  to 
places  of  amusement,  from  his  dread  of  a  crowd.  He 
was  invited  to  a  grand  ball  at  the  palace  of  St. 
James,  in  honor  of  the  birth-day  of  the  Princess,  but 
instead  of  mixing  with  the  company,  he  was,  at  his 
own  desire,  put  into  a  small  room,  from  whence  he 
could  see  all  that  passed  without  beiDg  seen  himself. 

When  Peter  left  England,  he  gave  the  King's 
servants  one  hundred  and  twenty  guineas,  which  was 
more  than  they  deserved,  as  they  had  treated  him 
with  great  rudeness.  To  the  King  he  gave  a  very 
valuable  rough   ruby,  which  was   said  by   the   best 


PETER   THE   GREAT.  65 

jeweller  of  Amsterdam   to   be   worth   ten  thousand 
pounds  sterling. 

This  splendid  ruby  the  Czar  took  from  his  waist- 
coat pocket,  and  gave  it  to  the  King,  wrapped  up 
in  a  piece  of  brown  paper 


66  THE   HISTORY   OF 


CHAPTER  VI. 

The  Czar  inquires  as  to  different  religious  sects— The  Burgomaster's  wig 
— The  rebellion  in  Eussia— Its  causes— The  Czar's  appearance  in 
Eussia — Defeat  and  punishment  of  the  rebels — Yarious  improve- 
ments—The dock-yard  at  Yoronitz— Death  of  Le  Fort— Peter  a 
laborer. 

While  in  England  and  Holland,  the  Czar  made  many- 
inquiries  as  to  the  different  religious  sects,  and 
attended  churches  of  different  religious  denominations, 
among  others,  the  Quaker  meeting ;  always  conform- 
ing to  the  customs  of  the  congregation  he  worshipped 
with,  and  listening  to  all  that  was  said  with  respectful 
attention. 

In  general,  while  in  these  countries  he  allowed  his 
officers  to  be  very  familiar  with  him,  so  that  they 
often  called  him  by  his  name,  which  seemed  to  please 
him.  But  if  at  any  time  he  chose  to  remember  that 
he  was  Emperor  of  Russia,  and  they  his  subjects, 
there  was  nothing  for  them  but  to  remember  it  also, 
and  return  to  their  former  respectful  manner. 

The  Czar  and  his  officers  often  held  their  own 


PETER   THE   GREAT.  67 

worship  in  the  market-place,  and  one  day  being  sur- 
prised by  a  shower,  he  coolly  took  off  the  wig  of  one 
of  his  officers,  and  put  it  on  his  own  head  to  protect 
himself  from  the  rain,  while  the  poor  man  stood  bare- 
headed, not  daring  to  grumble  or  remonstrate. 

This  was  not  an  uncommon  thing  with  the  Czar, 
who  often  suffered  from  a  feeling  of  coldness  about 
the  head.  One  Sunday  in  Holland,  he  attended 
church  with  the  Burgomaster,  (chief  magistrate  of  the 
town,)  and  sat  next  him  in  his  pew.  He  was  listening 
with  great  attention  to  the  preacher,  the  people  in  the 
mean  time  all  looking  at  him. 

What  was  their  surprise  and  amusement,  to  see 
Peter  suddenly  stretch  out  his  hand  and  seize  the 
Burgomaster's  large  flowing  wig,  and  place  it  on 
his  own  head  !  When  the  sermon  was  over,  he  re- 
turned the  wig  with  a  polite  bow,  never  seeming  to 
think  that  he  had  taken  rather  a  disagreeable  liberty 
with  one  of  the  great  men  of  the  town. 

From  England  Peter  went  to  Vienna,  in  order  to 
study  the  military  discipline  of  the  Germans,  and 
from  there  he  intended  to  go  to  Venice;  but  the 
news  of  a  rebellion  among  the  Strelitzes  in  his  own 
dominions,  made  it  necessary  for  him  to  hasten  home. 
The  very  means  he  was  taking  to  improve  and  en- 
lighten his  country,  were  the  causes  of  this  rebellion. 
The  noblemen  who  disliked  change  began  to  grumble 


68  THE    HISTOEY    OP 

that  so  many  foreigners,  and  such  new  customs  and 
manners,  were  to  be  introduced  into  the  empire.  The 
priests  said  that  their  ancient  religion  was  to  be  over- 
thrown, and  a  new  one  introduced  in  its  stead,  and 
the  Strelitzes  were  told  that  their  body  was  to  be 
broken  up  and  scattered. 

Now  the  old  party  of  Sophia  roused  up  anew,  and 
determined  to  take  her  by  force  from  the  convent 
and  place  her  on  the  throne,  and  then  to  prevent  the 
return  of  the  Czar  to  Russia.  They  assembled  in  a 
large  body,  and  marched  towards  Moscow,  but  were 
met  by  General  Gordon,  whom  Peter  had  left  in 
command  of  his  forces,  and  entirely  defeated,  and 
great  numbers  of  them  taken  prisoners. 

To  the  amazement  of  all,  the  Czar,  who  had  trav- 
elled privately,  and  as  quickly  as  possible,  now  ap- 
peared in  Moscow.  He  immediately  rewarded  those 
who  had  defeated  the  Strelitzes,  and  then  proceeded 
to  punish  those  unhappy  men,  of  whom  the  prisons 
were  now  full.  The  leaders,  officers  and  priests  of  the 
party,  were  condemned  to  death.  Some  were  broke 
on  the  wheel ;  some  buried  alive  ;  many  executed  in 
other  ways :  and  this  being  in  the  depth  of  winter, 
their  bodies  were  immediately  frozen,  and  were  left  in 
the  same  position  in  which  they  were  executed,  with 
their  heads  lying  by  them. 

On  all  the  public  roads  leading  to  Moscow,  and 


PETER   THE   GREAT.  69 

all  around  the  three  walls  of  the  city  were  gibbets,  on 
which  hung  all  winter  the  bodies  of  the  rebels,  and  it 
is  said  that  numbers  of  them  were  hung  about  the 
monastery  where  the  Princess  Sophia,  and  Eudosia, 
the  wife  of  Peter,  were  confined;  and  that  from 
whichever  window  they  looked,  the  sight  of  the  stiff, 
dead  bodies  of  those  who  had  fought  for  them,  met 
their  eyes. 

Great  numbers  of  the  rebel  party,  with  their 
wives  and  children,  were  exiled  to  Siberia ;  the  band 
of  the  Strelitzes  was  entirely  broken  up,  and  their 
very  name  abolished.  If  their  crime  was  great,  their 
punishment  was  equally  so.  The  lives  of  many  were 
sacrificed  who  might  have  been  useful  to  their  country 
as  laborers  in  the  mines,  and  upon  the  public  works,  but 
the  Czar  was  determined  that  the  punishment  should 
be  such  as  to  prevent  all  thoughts  of  rebellion  for  the 
future. 

A  Prussian  minister  who  was  at  that  time  at  the 
Court  of  Russia,  states  in  his  private  memoirs,  that 
at  a  great  entertainment  given  by  Peter  about  this 
time,  he  caused  twenty  of  these  unfortunate  Strelitzes 
to  be  brought  into  the  banqueting  room,  and  at  every 
glass  of  wine  he  drank,  he  struck  off  a  head  with  his 
own  hand.  This  story  is  doubted  by  many.  I  see 
that  Voltaire  gives  a  hint  of  it  in  his  history  of 
Charles  the  Twelfth,  but  when  he  came  to  write  the  life 


10  THE   HISTORY   OF 

of  Peter,  some  years  after,  his  hero  had  become  such 
a  favorite  that  he  suppressed  this,  as  well  as  other  dis- 
agreeable facts  in  his  history. 

I  find  in  some  authors  still  more  horrible  accounts 
of  the  cruel  punishments  inflicted  upon  these  unhappy 
rebels.  But  as  there  is  some  doubt  as  to  the  truth  of 
them,  and  as  the  account  in  which  all  agree  is  bad 
enough,  I  have  contented  myself  with  stopping  there. 

The  rebellion  being  suppressed,  and  the  trouble- 
some band  of  Strelitzes  entirely  broken  up,  Peter 
now  turned  his  thoughts  to  the  improvement  of  his 
country,  and  began  in  reality  to  introduce  the  customs 
and  manners  of  more  civilized  nations  into  his  own. 

The  dress  of  the  Russian  soldier  had  before  this 
time  been  a  long,  loose  coat,  reaching  to  the  heels, 
and  confined  with  a  belt  around  the  waist ;  loose,  wide 
drawers,  a  high  cap,  like  a  helmet,  on  the  head, 
and  a  long,  bushy  beard.  These  long  beards  and 
loose  coats  were  worn  throughout  the  empire  by 
all  classes,  and  Peter  determined  that^they  should  be 
abolished,  though  he  knew  he  should  have  terrible 
opposition  to  encounter  in  carrying  out  his  plan. 

He  therefore  ordered  that  all  persons  should  shave 
their  beards  and  shorten  their  coats,  or  pay  a  certain 
tax  to  the  government.  There  were  so  many,  how- 
ever, who  preferred  paying  the  tax  to  changing  any 


PETER   THE   GREAT.  Tl 

former  custom,  that  a  very  considerable  sum  was  thus 
brought  into  the  treasury  of  the  country. 

Schools  for  the  Latin  and  German,  and  for  instruc- 
tion in  various  arts  and  sciences,  were  established 
throughout  the  empire ;  and  Peter  obliged  his  sub- 
jects to  go  to  other  countries  and  trade,  which  before 
his  time  they  had  been  forbidden  to  do,  on  pain  of 
death. 

The  Russians  had  before  this  begun  their  year  in 
September,  but  feeling  the  inconvenience  of  having  a 
calendar  different  from  all  the  rest  of  the  world,  Peter 
ordered  that  the  year  1700  should  begin  with  the  1st 
of  January,  which  day  was  to  be  celebrated  with  a 
jubilee  and  other  rejoicings. 

Upon  this  came  a  terrible  outcry  from  the  priests, 
who  said  that  the  world  was  made  in  September,  and 
God  meant  that  the  creation  should  be  dated  from 
that  month.  The  people  wondered  most  of  all,  that 
the  Czar  should  be  able  to  change  the  course  of  the 
sun.  j, 

For  a  long  time  there  was  great  confusion,  from 
one  party  using  the  new  style,  and  the  other  the  old  ; 
but  at  length  the  new  style  was  adopted  throughout 
the  country,  and  the  Russians  began  the  year  with  the 
rest  of  the  world. 

Peter  now  turned  his  attention  to  the  female 
portion  of  the  nation,  and  began  to  do  something  to 


72  THE   HISTOET   OF 

raise  them  from  the  degradation  to  which  woman  is 
doomed  in  all  barbarous  and  half-civilized  countries. 
Before  this  time  women  had  not  been  allowed  to  asso- 
ciate with  the  other  sex,  at  feasts  or  entertainments, 
or  if  they  were  admitted  to  the  room,  they  were  not 
allowed  to  sit  at  the  same  table. 

If  all  the  stories  told  of  the  feasts  and  revels  of 
Peter  and  his  Court  are  true,  I  should  not  wonder  if 
the  women  had  begged  that  the  old  state  of  things 
might  continue.  But  from  this  time  Peter  began  by 
inviting  both  sexes  to  his  assemblies,  and  soon  the 
fashion  of  mixing  thus  at  all  entertainments  became 
general. 

Peter  also  did  away  with  the  absurd  custom 
relating  to  marriages,  of  which  I  have  told  you,  and 
from  that  time  the  lady,  as  in  other  countries,  was 
allowed  some  choice  as  to  whom  she  would  prefer  for 
a- partner  for  life.  A  decided  improvement  this  upon 
the  old  plan. 

The  Czar  now  busied  himself  with  the  formation 
of  new  troops,  obliging  the  sons  of  noblemen  and 
princes  to  serve  as  common  soldiers  before  they  could 
become  officers.  He  sent  other  young  men  to 
serve  in  his  fleet  at  Voronitz  on  the  Don,  and  these 
were  to  begin  as  common  sailors  before  they  could 
rise  to  command. 

Of  all  this  no  one  dared  to  complain,  as  the  Czar 


PETER  THE   GREAT.  ^3 

himself  had  set  them  an  example  by  doing  the  same 
thing. 

Peter  also  put  down  the  power  of  the  clergy,  and 
though  he  did  not  so  call  himself,  he  became  actually 
head  of  the  church  in  his  country.  The  Patriarch 
Adrian  dying  during  his  reign,  he  declared  that  there 
should  for  the  future  be  no  Patriarch  in  Russia. 

One  improvement  followed  another  in  rapid 
succession.  The  people  had  never  used  any  thing  to 
write  upon  but  long  rolls  made  of  the  bark  of  trees, 
or  of  parchment.  But  the  Czar  published  an  order, 
that  from  that  time,  every  one  should  use  paper  to 
write  upon,  as  they  did  in  the  rest  of  Europe. 

Painted  posts  to  serve  as  mile-stones  were  set  up 
on  the  public  roads,  and  inns  for  the  accommodation 
of  travellers  established  at  certain  distances.  It  is 
astonishing  to  see  how  much  was  thus  accomplished 
by  one  man  for  the  improvement  of  his  country,  espe- 
cially when  he  had  to  battle  all  the  way  against  the 
opposition  of  those  for  whose  good  he  was  laboring. 

All  these  improvements,  and  many  others,  were 
begun  before  Peter  was  thirty  years  of  age. 

He  now  set  out  to  examine  his  fleet  and  naval 
works  at  Vorintz,  but  had  not  been  long  there,  when 
he  received  tidings  of  the  sudden  death  of  his  friend 
Le  Fort.  He  hastened  back  to  Moscow  in  great 
distress,  to  attend  the  funeral,  and  took  his  station  in 
4 


74  THE   HISTORY    OF 

the  procession  as  lieutenant,  which  was  the  rank  he 
held  in  General  Le  Fort's  regiment. 

As  soon  as  the  funeral  was  over,  Peter  returned 
to  his  dockyard  at  Vorintz,  where,  as  in  Holland,  he 
wore  the  dress  of  the  common  workmen,  and  worked 
harder  than  any.  In  a  round  hat,  and  jacket  and 
trowers,  he  was  ever  bustling  about,  talking  busily 
with  the  workmen,  particularly  with  the  Dutch,  whose 
language  he  well  understood. 

If  a  poor  fellow  passes  struggling  with  a  heavy 
wheelbarrow,  he  runs,  and  pushing  him  aside,  seizes 
the  handles,  and  trundles  it  off  with  the  greatest  ease. 
If  a  man  is  awkward  in  the  use  of  a  spade,  he 
snatches  it  from  him,  and  shows  him  how  to  use  it  to 
the  best  advantage.  If  a  man  is  taken  sick,  or  an 
accident  happens,  Peter  is  the  first  on  the  spot  to  ad- 
minister medicine  or  dress  a  wound,  and  is  particu- 
larly delighted  if  he  can  find  occasion  to  bleed  the 
sufferer.  In  all  this  we  find  it  difficult  to  recognize 
Peter  the  Czar,  who  at  times  sits  absolute  upon  his 
throne,  and  strikes  off  heads  as  a  pleasant  pastime 
while  he  drinks  his  wine. 


PETER   THE   GREAT.  V5 


CHAPTER   VII. 

Peter  the  Great  as  a  warrior— Charles  Twelfth— Dangers  that  threatened 
Sweden— Charles  in  a  new  character— Causes  of  quarrel  between 
Sweden  and  the  other  countries—  Battle  of  Narva — Its  result— How 
Peter  bore  his  defeat — New  improvements — Victories  of  Scherematof. 

We  come  now  to  Peter  the  Great  as  a  warrior,  and  to 
his  battles  with  Charles  Twelfth,  King  of  Sweden. 
This  young  king  was  now  (in  the  year  1700)  only  18 
years  of  age,  and  had  as  yet  shown  little  interest  in 
the  affairs  of  his  country,  leaving  them  to  be  managed 
altogether  by  his  ministers. 

When  the  Council  assembled  to  talk  over  the 
affairs  of  the  nation,  Charles  sat  cross-legged  upon 
the  table,  absent,  listless,  and  paying  no  attention  to 
what  was  said.  But  now  the  ministers  of  Charles 
Twelfth  were  in  great  trouble,  for  their  country  was 
threatened  by  the  united  forces  of  Russia,  Denmark, 
and  Poland,  and  they  met  to  consult  upon  the  danger- 
ous state  of  affairs.     Some  of  the  members  proposed 


76  THE   HISTORY    OF 

to  settle  the  matter  by  negotiation,  when,  all  of  a 
sudden,  to  their  great  surprise,  Charles  rose,  and  with 
an  air  of  dignity,  like  a  man  who  has  determined  upon 
his  course,  he  said  : 

"  Gentlemen,  I  am  resolved  never  to  begin  an 
unjust  war,  nor  ever  to  finish  one,  but  by  the  destruc- 
tion of  my  enemies.  My  resolution  is  fixed.  I  will 
attack  the  first  who  shall  declare  against  me,  and 
after  having  conquered  him,  I  hope  I  shall  be  able  to 
strike  terror  into  the  rest." 

He  then  gave  his  orders  for  the  war,  which  were 
received  with  admiration  by  his  old  officers,  who  were 
ashamed  to  appear  less  hopeful  than  their  King. 

The  King  of  Denmark,  from  whom  the  Swedes 
had  taken  some  provinces,  determined  to  do  battle 
against  Sweden  in  order  to  regain  them,  and  the  King 
of  Poland  was  also  bent  on  recovering  provinces 
which  in  the  former  reign  had  been  given  up  to  the 
King  of  Sweden ;  but  why  did  Peter  the  Great  wish 
to  make  war  with  Sweden,  and  what  excuse  did  he 
find  for  beginning  the  quarrel  ? 

He  was  determined,  as  we  have  all  seen,  to  make 
a  great  and  flourishing  people  of  the  barbarians  over 
whom  he  reigned.  But  he  saw  that  this  could  not  be 
done  without  ships  and  commerce,  and  the  latter  could 
not  be  enjoyed  without  some  means  of  communicat- 
ing with   the    great   ocean    besides  that  he  already 


PETER   THE   GREAT.  77 

possessed  by  means  of  the  port  of  Archangel,  which 
was  on  a  sea  frozen  up  at  least  six  months  of  the 
year. 

His  desire,  in  order  to  get  a  free  communication 
with  the  great  ocean,  was  to  get  possession  of  some 
port  on  that  part  of  the  Baltic  called  the  G-ulf  of 
Finland,  all  the  provinces  surrounding  which  were 
now  in  possession  of  the  Swedes,  though  they  had  at 
one  time  belonged  to  Russia. 

Upon  the  town  of  Riga  Peter  cast  a  longing  eye, 
and  he  determined  if  possible  to  regain  possession  of 
this  valuable  seaport ;  and  therefore  gladly  joined 
with  Poland  and  Denmark  in  their  league  against 
Sweden. 

You  remember  that  when  Peter  passed  through 
Riga,  on  his  way  to  Holland,  the  Governor,  D'Alberg, 
rudely  refused  his  request  to  see  the  fortifications  of 
the  place.  Peter  took  little  notice  of  this  treatment  at 
the  time,  merely  remarking  "  that  he  should  probably 
receive  more  civility  at  his  next  visit,  for  he  hoped  to 
see  the  day  when  he  should  have  the  honor  to  refuse 
the  same  civility  to  the  King  of  Sweden  himself." 

And  now  the  war  began.  And  to  the  astonishment 
of  all  Europe,  the  young  King  Charles  Twelfth, 
coming  out  in  his  new  character,  entered  Denmark, 
and  put  an  end  to  the  war  in  that  kingdom  in  less 
than  six  weeks ;  the  Danes  gladly  paying  him  a  large 


78  THE   HISTOEY    OF 

sum  of  money,  in  order  to  buy  him  off  from  laying 
siege  to  Copenhagen. 

Charles  now  proceeded  to  Riga,  which  was  besieged 
by  the  King  of  Poland,  who  was  expecting  the  Czar 
to  join  him,  with  nearly  a  hundred  thousand  men. 
But  the  old  Count  D'Alberg  proved  to  be  too  able  a 
soldier  for  the  Polish  commander  to  fight  with,  and 
the  latter  soon  left  the  place  in  despair. 

Denmark  and  Poland  being  disposed  of,  there 
remained  now  but  one  enemy  for  Charles  Twelfth  to 
attend  to.  This  was  the  Czar  Peter,  whose  troops 
were  now  encamped  before  Narva,  which  you  will  see 
near  the  southern  coast  of  the  G-ulf  of  Finland. 
Through  the  midst  of  ice  and  snow,  in  the  month  of 
November,  Charles  Twelfth  marched  on  towards 
Narva  to  attack  the  army  of  the  Czar. 

Peter,  who  had  an  army  of  sixty,  or  as  some  say, 
eighty  thousand  men,  to  oppose  to  his  boy  enemy,  the 
King  of  Sweden,  looked  upon  the  town  of  Narva  as 
already  in  his  possession.  He  therefore  left  the 
command  of  his  forces  with  the  Duke  de  Croy,  who 
was  a  German,  and  Prince  Dolgorouki,  a  Russian  officer, 
while  he  went  to  Novorogod  to  confer  with  the  King 
of  Poland  as  to  the  best  course  to  take  in  the  coming 
war. 

It  is  supposed  to  be  owing  partly  to  the  absence 
of  the  Czar,  and  partly  to  the  jealousy  between  the 


PETER   THE   GEEAT.  79 

two  princes  who  were  left  in  command  of  the  troops, 
that  the  Russian  army  was  so  terribly  beaten. 

The  young  King  of  Sweden  had  not  quite  nine 
thousand  men,  and  only  six  pieces  of  cannon,  to  op- 
pose to  the  immense  army  of  the  Czar,  and  the  one 
hundred  and  forty-five  pieces  of  cannon  with  which 
the  Russian  camp  was  defended.  He,  however,  hesi- 
tated not  a  moment,  but  taking  advantage  of  a  violent 
wind,  and  a  terrible  storm  of  snow,  which  blew  directly 
in  the  faces  of  the  Russians,  he  attacked  them  with 
great  vigor. 

The  Russians  were  astonished  at  the  discharge  of 
cannon  which  they  could  not  see,  and  never  imagined 
how  small  a  number  of  men  were  coming  against 
them.  They  were  thrown  at  once  into  great  confu- 
sion, and  had  no  time  to  form  in  the  midst  of  that 
driving  storm ;  panic  soon  spread  through  the  army, 
and  they  turned  and  fled. 

Some  threw  themselves  into  the  river  Narva, 
where  great  numbers  were  drowned;  others  laid 
down  their  arms,  and  surrendered  themselves  to  the 
conquering  Swedes.  The  Duke  de  Croy  and  the 
other  officers  of  the  Russian  army,  dreading  the 
Russians  more  than  the  Swedes,  surrendered  them- 
selves as  prisoners  to  the  commander  of  the  Swedish 
army. 

Thirty  thousand  of  the  Russians  laid  down  their 


80  THE   HISTORY   OF 

arms  at  the  feet  of  the  King  of  Sweden,  and  filed  off 
bareheaded  and  disarmed  before  him ;  and  then  for 
the  first  time  they  discovered  that  they  had  been 
subdued  by  eight  or  nine  thousand  men.  The  number 
of  those  who  were  made  prisoners  was  four  times 
greater  than  that  of  the  conquerors. 

Perhaps,  from  not  knowing  what  to  do  with  this 
immense  number  of  prisoners,  the  King  of  Sweden 
allowed  one-half  of  the  Russian  soldiers  to  return, 
after  having  disarmed  them,  and  the  other  half  to  re- 
pass the  river  with  their  arms,  thus  restoring  to  the 
Czar  troops,  who,  after  being  well  disciplined,  became 
brave  and  excellent  soldiers.  Well  would  it  have 
been  for  King  Charles  had  he  not  met  them  in 
battle  again ! 

Great  was  the  gain  to  King  Charles  by  this  vic- 
tory. Immense  magazines,  boats  loaded  with  pro- 
visions, and  all  the  artillery,  fell  into  his  hands,  and 
the  whole  country  was  at  the  mercy  of  the  Swedish 
army.  In  less  than  twelve  months  the  King  of 
Sweden,  not  yet  twenty  years  of  age,  had  been  victo- 
rious over  the  monarchs  of  Denmark,  Poland  and 
Russia,  and  was  looked  upon  as  the  first  prince  in 
Europe. 

Peter,  who,  as  I  have  told  you,  had  left  his  army 
to  go  and  arrange  some  matters  with  the  King  of 
Poland,  heard  while  on  his  way  of  this  terrible  defeat. 


PETER    THE    GEEAT.  81 

He  took  it  however  very  calmly,  merely  saying  :  "  I 
know  very  well  that  the  Swedes  will  have  the  advan- 
tage of  ns  for  some  time,  but  they  will  teach  us  at 
length  to  conquer  them." 

He  at  once  sent  all  the  troops  he  could  muster  to 
prevent  the  further  advance  of  King  Charles,  while 
he  himself  went  to  Moscow,  where  he  issued  orders 
for  a  great  number  of  new  cannon  to  be  cast,  to  make 
up  for  the  loss  of  those  taken  by  the  Swedes. 

But  for  this  purpose  there  was  not  enough  metal 
to  be  found;  the  Czar  therefore  ordered  that  the 
bells  of  all  the  churches  and  convents  should  be  taken 
and  cast  into  cannon  and  mortars.  With  these  bells 
were  made  one  hundred  large  cannon,  one  hundred 
and  forty-three  field  pieces,  besides  mortars  and  other 
pieces  of  artillery.  All  this  the  Czar  was  obliged  to 
superintend  in  person,  or  it  would  not  have  been 
properly  done. 

Peter  now  went  to  meet  Augustus,  King  of 
Poland,  to  persuade  him  to  continue  the  war  against 
Charles  Twelfth ;  but  though  Augustus  himself 
seemed  inclined  to  join  with  the  Czar  against 
Sweden,  his  people  were  in  no  haste  to  enter  into 
the  quarrel,  and  Peter  found  that  he  must  depend 
upon  his  own  strength. 

Between  the  provinces  of  Livonia  and  St.  Peters- 
burg, lies  the  large  lake  of  Peipus.  Here  the  Czar 
4* 


82  THE   HISTORY    OF 

found  it  necessary  to  station  a  large  fleet  to  prevent 
the  Swedish  troops  from  attacking  the  province  of 
Novorogod,  and  to  be  ready  to  make  a  descent  upon 
the  coasts  belonging  to  Sweden.  He  therefore  em- 
ployed nearly  the  whole  of  the  year  1701  in  building 
on  this  lake  one  hundred  galleys,  each  to  carry  about 
fifty  men,  while  other  armed  vessels  were  fitted  out 
on  Lake  Ladoga. 

All  these  operations  Peter  himself  superintended, 
and  set  his  new  sailors  to  work.  He  also  brought  up 
his  sailors  from  the  river  Don  and  the  sea  of  Azof, 
and  stationed  them  on  Lake  Ladoga.  While  over- 
seeing these  immense  operations,  he  constantly  visited 
Moscow,  to  see  that  all  was  going  right  there,  and 
other  provinces  to  establish  new  customs,  and  to  see 
that  the  old  ones  were  properly  observed. 

Other  princes,  as  Voltaire  says,  have  gained  to 
themselves  a  great  name  by  raising  public  works  in 
time  of  peace ;  but  that  Peter,  just  after  the  misfor- 
tune at  Narva,  should  apply  himself  to  the  work  of 
joining  the  Baltic,  Caspian,  and  European  seas,  by 
canals,  has  crowned  him  with  more  real  glory  than  the 
most  signal  victory. 

And  now  Charles  Twelfth,  who  might  have  car- 
ried all  before  him  in  Russia,  turns  from  this  great 
country  as  if  unworthy  of  his  notice,  and  gives  his 
whole   attention   to  Poland,   intending   to   dethrone 


PETEK   THE   GREAT.  83 

Augustus,  and  then  to  pursue  the  Czar  even  to  the 
very  gates  of  Moscow. 

He  little  thought,  that  having  given  the  Russian 
troops  lessons  in  war,  he  was  now  giving  them  time  to 
improve  upon  them  ;  and  that  before  he  was  ready  to 
turn  his  attention  to  them,  they  would  be  quite  ready  to 
meet  him  face  to  face.  Twelve  months  after  the  battle 
of  Narva,  the  Czar's  troops  were  so  well  disciplined 
that  they  defeated  one  of  the  best  Generals  belonging 
to  the  King  of  Sweden. 

"While  Charles  was  laying  all  Poland  waste,  Peter 
was  left  at  full  liberty,  not  only  to  recruit  and  disci- 
pline his  army,  but  to  design  and  carry  on  many  great 
improvements  in  the  empire.  He  introduced  from 
Saxony  flocks  of  sheep,  and  shepherds  to  attend 
them,  in  order  to  have  wool  fit  for  making  good  cloth. 
He  erected  linen  and  paper  manufactories,  built 
hospitals,  invited  from  abroad  workmen  in  brass, 
blacksmiths,  and  founders,  and  quantities  of  ore  were 
brought  from  the  mines  of  Siberia.  Thus  in  the 
midst  of  war  he  cultivated  the  arts  of  peace. 

Peter  himself  moved  about  with  such  rapidity, 
that  he  almost  seemed  to  his  people  to  have  the  power 
of  being  in  several  places  at  the  same  time.  One  week 
he  was  at  Plescow,  the  next  at  Moscow,  and  the  third 
at  Archangel,  to  which  place  he  hurried,  on  hearing 
that  the  Swedes  intended  to  attack  the  little  post  he 


84  THE   HISTORY    OF 

had  established  at  that  place.  Here  he  drew  the 
plan  of  a  new  fortress,  and  himself  laid  the  first  stone 
of  the  foundation. 

And  now  the  Russians  began  to  show  the  result  of 
their  training,  in  several  victories  which  they  gained 
over  the  Swedish  troops.  General  Scherematof  cap- 
tured a  Swedish  frigate  on  Lake  Peipus.  He  also 
obtained  a  victory  over  a  Swedish  General,  in  which 
he  took  a  great  number  of  prisoners,  and  four  of  their 
colors ;  and  on  the  1st  of  January,  1702,  he  fell  in 
with  the  main  body  of  the  Swedish  troops,  near  a 
village  named  Eresfort. 

"  As  our  troops,"  said  the  Czar,  in  his  journal, 
"  were  new,  and  but  little  exercised,  and  our  artillery 
had  not  arrived,  the  enemy  threw  a  great  part  of  our 
men  into  confusion,  and  obliged  them  to  fall  back, 
but  on  being  joined  by  our  artillery,  their  retreat  was 
stopped.  Our  men  being^gain  formed  in  order  of 
battle,  attacked  them  with  so  much  vigor,  that  after 
an  action  of  four  hours,  the  Swedes  were  compelled 
to  yield,  to  abandon  their  artillery,  and  fly.  The 
enemy  lost  in  this  action  the  greater  part  of  his 
troops,  as  three  thousand  lay  dead  on  the  field  of 
battle.  Of  our  men  about  one  thousand  were  killed." 
General  Scherematof  was  made  Field-Marshal,  and 
other  honors  were  bestowed  upon  him. 

For  this  victory  thanks  were  publicly  returned, 


PETER   THE    GREAT.  85 

and  salutes,  fireworks,  and  other  rejoicings  were  in- 
dulged in.  After  this  victory  Peter  said  :  "  Well,  we 
have  at  last  beaten  the  Swedes,  when  we  were  two  to 
one  against  them.  We  shall  by-and-by  be  able  to  face 
them,  man  to  man." 

This  same  General  (now  Marshal)  Scherematof 
soon  gained  another  and  more  important  victory  over 
the  enemy,  of  which  the  Czar  says : 

"  With  the  assistance  of  God,  we  compelled  them 
to  fly  from  the  field  of  battle,  having  not  only 
retaken  the  artillery,  the  colors,  and  the  equipage, 
which  they  had  taken  from  us,  but  also  killed  so 
many  of  them,  that  the  few  remains  of  the  cavalry 
were  obliged  to  fly  towards  the  city  of  Pernow.  The 
marshal,  having  left  behind  the  infantry,  pursued  them 
with  the  regiments  of  dragoons ;  he  overtook  them  a 
few  miles  from  the  city,  and  routed  them  afresh.  On 
this  occasion  we  took  fifteen  pieces  of  cannon,  and 
sixteen  colors,  and  a  great  number  of  prisoners.  Our 
loss  was  ten  officers,  and  about  four  hundred  soldiers 
killed." 


86  THE   HISTORY    OF 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

The  siege  of  Jtfarienburg— The  young  -widow— Her  eventful  story— Change 
of  fortune  for  the  Czar — The  "  Key  City  "  — Triumphal  entry  into 
Moscow. 

Upon  a  small  lake  on  the  borders  of  the  province  of 
Livonia,  stood  the  little  town  of  Marienburg,  which 
Marshal  Scherematof  now  reached  in  his  victorious 
march.  In  order  to  take  this  town  by  assault,  it  was 
necessary  to  cross  the  lake  on  floating  bridges ;  but 
when  the  people  of  the  town  found  that  preparations 
for  an  attack  in  this  manner  were  being  made,  they 
agreed  to  give  up  the  place,  on  condition  of  letting 
the  inhabitants  leave  it  peaceably,  which  was  granted. 
But  while  the  Major  who  commanded,  with  two 
Captains,  came  to  the  Russian  camp  to  give  up  the 
place,  a  Captain  Woolf  and  an  ensign  of  artillery, 
the  latter  dragging  his  wife  by  force,  entered  the 
powder  magazine,  and  set  fire  to  it,  by  which  great 
numbers,  both  of  Russians  and  Swedes,  were  blown 
into  the  air.     In  consequence  of  this,  all  the  inhabi- 


PETER   THE   GREAT.  87 

tants,  now  a  very  small  number,  were  taken  prisoners, 
and  the  town  was  entirely  destroyed. 

Among  the  prisoners  thus  taken  was  a  young 
woman  in  humble  circumstances,  who  afterwards 
became  Empress  of  the  country  to  which  she  was 
now  led  captive.  General  Bauer,  before  whom  the 
prisoners  of  war  were  to  file  off,  was  a  man  of  great 
mildness  and  humanity,  who  had  risen  from  the 
ranks  to  his  present  station. 

He  noticed  among  the  prisoners  a  very  young  girl 
with  tears  streaming  down  her  cheeks,  and  evidently  in 
very  great  trouble.  He  was  so  struck  with  her  face  and 
manner,  that  he  ordered  her  to  be  taken  care  of  till 
he  had  time  to  talk  with  her.  Her  modesty  and 
diffidence,  and  indeed  her  whole  conduct,  charmed  the 
good  General,  who  told  her  she  had  nothing  to  fear, 
as  he  would  take  care  that  she  was  well  treated.  Her 
story  was  this : 

She  was  born  at  Ringen,  a  small  village  in  Livo- 
nia. Her  mother  had  been  a  very  poor  woman,  sup- 
ported by  Count  Rosen,  an  officer  in  the  Swedish 
service,  and  the  owner  of  the  village.  When  she  was 
three  years  of  age,  she  suffered  a  double  loss,  in  the 
death  of  her  mother,  and  of  her  mother's  friend, 
Count  Rosen.  She  was  then  taken  into  the  house  of 
the  clerk  of  the  village,  who  kept  a  small  school  for 
children. 


88  THE   HISTORY    OF 

Doctor  Gluck,  the  Lutheran  minister  of  Marien- 
burg,  happening  to  come  to  this  village  one  day,  visited 
the  school,  and  the  moment  he  saw  this  little  Martha, 
as  she  was  then  called,  he  took  a  great  fancy  to  her, 
and  asked  the  clerk,  who  was  very  poor,  if  he  would 
be  willing  to  part  with  her.  The  clerk  consented, 
and  Doctor  Gluck  took  her  home  with  him,  and 
treated  her  like  one  of  his  own  family.  Here  she 
made  herself  very  useful,  and  soon  became  a  great 
favorite.  At  first  she  knew  no  language  but  the 
Livonian,  but  under  the  instruction  of  Dr.  Gluck^s 
soon  became  mistress  of  the  German. 

As  she  grew  older,  her  beauty  attracted  many 
admirers.  Among  them  all,  the  only  one  she  liked 
was  a  Livonian  sergeant  in  the  Swedish  army.  She 
would  not  marry  him,  however,  without  the  consent 
of  Dr.  Gluck.  The  Doctor,  after  making  inquiries, 
and  satisfying  himself  that  the  young  man  was  steady 
and  respectable,  and  able  to  support  his  favorite  com- 
fortably, gave  his  consent,  and  married  them  him- 
self. 

The  very  next  day  Marienburg  surrendered  to  the 
Russians,  and  the  husband  of  Martha  was  killed.  It 
was  while  weeping,  in  her  distress  on  hearing  this 
tidings,  that  General  Bauer  saw  her,  and  was  touched 
with  compassion  for  her  sufferings.  He  took  her 
home,  and  appointed  her  his  housekeeper,  in  which 


PETER  THE   GREAT.  89 

situation,  as  we  are  informed  by  M.  Wurmb,  who  was 
tutor  in  Doctor  Gluck's  family,  "  she  was  a  pattern  of 
virtue  and  good  conduct,  and  while  with  the  General, 
she  was  greatly  beloved  by  all  his  domestics,  over 
whom  she  was  placed." 

But  she  was  not  destined  long  to  remain  in  the 
service  of  General  Bauer.  One  day,  Menzikoff, 
happening  to  be  at  the  General's  house,  saw  the  young 
housekeeper,  and  being  much  pleased  with  her  appear- 
ance and  manners,  and  having  heard  her  history,  he 
asked  General  Bauer  if  he  would  part  with  her,  as  he 
was  in  want  of  such  a  person  to  oversee  the  female 
part  of  his  establishment. 

The  General  would  have  been  glad  to  refuse,  but 
as  he  was  under  great  obligations  to  Menzikoff,  he 
felt  that  it  would  be  ungrateful  to  deny  his  request ; 
and  the  next  day  saw  Martha  in  the  palace  of  Menzi- 
koff. Here  she  was  first  seen  by  Peter  the  Great, 
when  she  was  seventeen  years  of  age.  He  became 
much  attached  to  her,  and  married  her,  at  first  pri- 
vately, and  afterwards  publicly,  and  had  her  crowned 
Empress  of  Russia.  After  the  death  of  Peter,  this 
wonderful  woman,  whose  life  had  been  one  of  such 
extraordinary  changes,  succeeded  to  the  throne  of 
Russia. 

"  There  had  been  many  instances,"  says  Voltaire, 
"before  this,  of  private  women  being  raised  to  the 


90  THE   HISTOEY   OF 

throne ;  nothing  was  more  common  in  Russia,  and  in 
all  Asiatic  kingdoms,  than  for  crowned  heads  to 
marry  their  own  subjects ;  but  that  a  poor  stranger, 
who  had  been  taken  prisoner  in  the  storming  of  a 
town,  should  become  the  absolute  sovereign  of  that 
very  empire,  whither  she  was  led  captive,  is  an 
instance  which  fortune  and  merit  never  produced  be- 
fore nor  since  in  the  annals  of  the  world." 

Fortune  now  seemed  to  favor  the  Czar  every 
where.  His  vessels  on  Lake  Ladoga  gained  victo- 
ries over  those  of  the  Swedes,  driving  them  to  take 
shelter  on  the  other  side  of  the  lake.  Look  on  the 
map,  and  find  the  little  river  Neva,  which  runs  from 
the  foot  of  Lake  Ladoga  through  the  city  of  St. 
Petersburg,  the  foundations  of  which  were  not  yet 
laid. 

To  gain  possession  of  the  river  Neva  was  now 
the  constant  aim  of  Peter  the  Great,  as  by  that  means 
he  would  have  the  communication  he  so  much  desired 
with  the  Baltic.  There  is  an  island  in  Lake  Ladoga, 
near  the  spot  where  this  river  empties  into  the  lake, 
upon  which  stood  the  strongly  fortified  town  of  Note- 
burg,  of  which  Peter  was  determined  to  gain  posses- 
sion, if  possible.  He  gave  command  of  the  siege  to 
Marshal  Scherematof,  he  himself  acting  as  Captain  of 
the  Preobazinski  guards. 

The  Russians  bombarded  the  town  night  and  day, 


PETER   THE   GEEAT.  91 

from  the  18th  of  September  to  the  12th  of  October, 
and  did  not  succeed  in  taking  it  till  the  Swedish  gar- 
rison was  reduced  to  less  than  a  hundred  men.  These 
few  men  nobly  defended  the  city  to  the  last,  and 
when  obliged  to  yield,  they  made  honorable  terms  for 
themselves.  Colonel  Slippembac,  who  commanded 
them,  would  not  surrender  the  town  till  he  had  sent 
for  two  Swedish  officers  from  the  nearest  post,  in  order 
that  they  might  bear  witness  for  him  to  the  King,  his 
master,  that  eighty-three  men,  who  were  all  then  left 
in  the  garrison  able  to  bear  arms,  besides  one  hundred 
and  fifty  sick  and  wounded,  did  not  surrender  to  a 
whole  army  until  it  was  impossible  for  them  to  fight 
any  longer  or  to  preserve  the  place. 

This  shows  what  a  brave  enemy  the  Czar  had  to 
contend  with,  and  how  necessary  it  was  for  him  to 
keep  up  strict  military  discipline  in  his  own  army. 
He  distributed  gold  medals  among  his  officers  on  this 
occasion,  and  gave  rewards  to  all  the  private  soldiers, 
except  a  few  whom  he  punished  for  running  away 
during  the  assault.  Their  fellow  soldiers  spit  in 
their  faces,  as  a  sign  of  their  contempt  for  their 
cowardly  conduct,  and  then  shot  them. 

The  name  of  the  conquered  town  was  changed  to 
Shlusseburg,  or  the  Key-town;  " because,"  said  the 
Czar,  "  it  is  by  this  key  that  the  gates  of  the  enemy's 
country  are  opened  to  us."     Menzikoff,  who  had  be- 


92  THE   HISTORY   OF 

haved  most  gallantly  during  the  siege,  was  appointed 
the  first  Governor  of  the  place,  and  the  Czar  gratified 
Marshal  Scherematof  and  his  other  officers,  by  giving 
them  a  triumphal  entry  into  Moscow. 

The  prisoners,  their  cannon,  colors,  and  twenty 
wagon  loads  of  ammunition,  appeared  in  the  proces- 
sion, which  passed  under  three  triumphal  arches,  while 
cannon  were  fired,  bells  were  rung,  and  every  other 
exhibition  of  joy  and  delight  was  indulged  in  by  the 
people. 

Many  of  the  Russian  people,  as  you  know,  com- 
plained of  the  reforms  which  the  Czar  was  making  in 
the  empire  ;  they  did  not  like  new  ways  and  customs, 
and  said  "  the  old  are  better."  Peter  now  deter- 
mined to  try  an  experiment,  and  see  whether,  in  all 
respects,  they  actually  preferred  the  old  style  of 
things ;  and  therefore  on  the  marriage  of  one  of  his 
sisters,  he  invited  these  discontented  noblemen  and 
their  families,  and  ordered  that  every  one  should  dress 
after  the  ancient  manner,  and  that  all  old  customs 
should  be  observed. 

A  dinner  was  served  up  in  the  same  manner  as  in 
the  sixteenth  century,  when  things  were  done  in  a 
much  ruder  style  than  in  the  days  of  Peter.  It  was 
an  old  and  superstitious  custom  not  to  light  a  fire  on 
a  wedding  day,  even  in  the  coldest  weather.  Peter 
therefore  ordered  that  no  fire  should  be  lighted  in  the 


PETER  THE   GREAT.  93 

palace,  and  lie  probably  enjoyed  it  mightily  to  see 
those  who  cried  out  against  new  customs,  sitting  shiv- 
ering, and  with  chattering  teeth,  and  wishing  in  their 
hearts  that  this  custom  at  least  might  not  be  revived. 

In  ancient  times  the  Russians  drank  no  wine,  but 
only  mead  and  brandy.  Peter  ordered  that  on  this 
occasion  the  old  custom  in  this  respect  should  be  ob- 
served ;  and  when  the  guests  complained,  and  begged 
for  wine,  he  answered  in  a  joking  manner,  "  This  was 
a  custom  with  your  ancestors,  and  old  customs  are 
always  the  best." 

Whether  the  supporters  of  old  customs  were  con- 
vinced or  not  by  this  return  to  them  for  a  time,  we 
are  assured  that  at  least  nothing  more  was  said  about 
the  old  ways  being  better,  at  least  as  far  as  these 
customs  were  concerned. 

The  news  of  this  entertainment  spread  through 
Moscow,  and  gave  great  amusement  to  the  poople, 
who  said  one  to  another,  a  What  a  comical  man  is  our 
Czar !  » 


94  THE   HISTORY   OF 


CHAPTER  IX. 

Building  of  the  City  of  St.  Petersburg— Trouble  and  sickness— The 
miracle  of  the  Weeping  Virgin— Ships  visit  the  new  city — New  pro- 
jects of  the  Czar — Battles — Affairs  in  Poland — St.  Petersburg  threat- 
ened by  a  Swedish  fleet — Battles  and  sieges— The  Czar  unfortunate, 
but  not  discouraged. 

Peter,  the  Czar  now  turned  his  attention  to  a  new 
project.  This  was  no  other  than  building  a  city  to 
be  called  after  himself,  St.  Petersburg,  near  the 
mouth  of  the  river  Neva,  just  where  it  enters  the 
Gulf  of  Finland.  It  was  indeed  a  strange  spot  upon 
which  to  found  a  city,  and  the  idea,  to  any  one  but 
Peter  the  Great,  would  have  seemed  hopeless. 

The  Neva  just  here  divides  into  four  or  five 
branches,  forming  several  low,  flat,  marshy  islands,  in 
the  centre  of  which  had  stood  a  Swedish  fortress, 
which  had  been  taken  by  the  troops  of  the  Czar. 
Here  was  begun  the  city  of  St.  Petersburg,  which  has 
now  risen  to  be  one  of  the  most  magnificent  cities  in 
the  world. 

All  around  was  a  marsh,  with  not  a  stone  of  any 
description ;    the  people  had   no  experience  in  this 


PETER    THE   GEEAT.  95 

kind  of  work,  and  were  not  furnished  with  the  proper 
tools,  such  as  spades,  shovels,  pick-axes,  &c,  and  the 
weather  was  intensely  cold ;  but  human  life  was  of 
little  account  to  the  Czar. 

He  brought  thousands  of  people  from  all  parts  of 
the  empire,  Russians,  Cossacks,  Tartars,  Calmucks, 
Finlanders,  and  Ingrians ;  and  when  they  fell  down 
and  died  from  hard  labor  and  exposure,  and  when 
thousands  fell  victims  to  a  terrible  sickness  that 
appeared  among  them  ;  what  mattered  it  to  the  Czar  ? 
Thousands  more  could  be  brought  to  supply  the  places 
of  those  who  fell.  It  is  said  that  not  less  than  one 
hundred  thousand  laborers  perished  there  during  the 
first  year. 

These  channels  of  the  river  were  deepened,  canals 
dug,  the  earth  heaped  up  to  raise  the  level  of  the 
islands,  which  were  often  overflowed.  There  were  no 
wheel-barrows,  and  these  poor  laborers  were  obliged 
to  bring  the  earth  on  which  the  foundations  of  this 
great  city  were  laid  from  a  distance,  in  the  skirts  of 
their  clothes,  and  in  bags  made  of  rags  and  old 
mats. 

But  in  spite  of  all  these  difficulties,  the  work  went 
on ;  and  in  the  course  of  a  year  there  stood  ujjon 
these  once  marshy  islands,  a  town  said  to  contain 
thirty  thousand  houses,  and  huts  of  one  kind  or  an- 
other.    All  this  the  Czar  superintended  in  person, 


96  THE   HISTOEY   OF 

taking  up  his  quarters  in  a  small  wooden  house,  which 
he  caused  to  be  built  for  himself,  and  which  still 
stands,  surrounded  by  a  protecting  wall,  and  is  visited 
by  many  in  memory  of  this  extraordinary  man. 

One  of  the  first  buildings  erected  was  a  church, 
for  though  Peter  had  no  love  for  the  priesthood,  he 
was  very  attentive  to  his  religious  duties ;  and  where- 
ever  he  was,  regularly  attended  divine  service  at 
some  church  or  other.  He  also  directed  many  mer- 
chants and  tradesmen  to  settle  in  his  new  city,  and 
take  possession  of  shops  there. 

The  next  thing  was  the  building  of  a  large  hotel, 
and  a  fine  mansion  for  Prince  Menzikoff,  who  took 
the  management  of  the  Czar's  public  entertainments 
upon  himself. 

But  now  came  trouble  among  the  workmen.  The 
Czar  was  absent,  and  had  left  Count  G-olofkin  to 
superintend  the  building  of  the  city.  The  men,  who 
were  suffering  from  privation  and  sickness,  and  were 
seeing  their  fellow-laborers  drop  into  the  grave  in 
great  numbers  daily,  began  to  complain  loudly,  and 
at  length  they  set  off  in  a  vast  crowd  towards  the 
church. 

Count  Golofkin  endeavored  to  make  his  way  to 
the  church,  but  the  crowd  was  so  great  that  he  was 
obliged  to  return.  He  was  told  that  the  Virgin  was 
so  afflicted  at  the   sufferings  of  her  people,  in  that 


PETER  THE    GREAT.  97 

horrid  climate,  that  her  image  in  the  church  was 
shedding  tears,  and  they  felt  assured,  that  some 
more  dreadful  fate  was  hanging  over  the  new  city. 

Glolofkin  not  knowing  what  do  with  the  people, 
sent  off  for  the  Czar,  who  arrived  the  next  day,  and 
went  at  once  to  the  church  to  witness  the  miracle. 
He  ordered  all  the  people  to  attend,  and  commanded 
the  priests  to  show  him  the  wonderful  sight  of  the 
weeping  image  of  the  Virgin. 

This  he  examined  attentively ;  and  when  he  saw 
something  oozing  from  the  eyes,  and  running  down 
the  cheeks,  he  ordered  one  of  the  priests  to  take  down 
the  image.  He  stripped  off  the  covering  behind,  and 
found  just  near  the  eyes  a  little  cavity  filled  with  oil, 
which  gradually  oozed  out  and  trickled  down  the 
cheeks.  This  he  explained  to  the  people,  and  then 
ordered  the  image  to  he  taken  to  his  house,  telling 
the  people  he  meant  to  keep  it  in  his  cabinet  of 
curiosities. 

Rapidly  rose  the  City  of  St.  Petersburg ;  built 
somewhat  after  the  plan  of  the  city  of  Amsterdam. 
The  wharves,  the  canals,  the  bridges,  and  the  streets, 
were  like  that  city  planted  with  trees.  And  now  the 
wish  of  the  Czar,  that  the  Baltic  should  be  a  channel 
of  communication  for  his  empire  with  other  nations, 
seemed  to  be  realized,  when  he  heard  that  a  Dutch 
ship  was  sailing  into  the  river. 
5 


98  THE    HISTORY    OF 

Auke  Wibes,  the  captain,  was  most  cordially 
welcomed  and  entertained,  while  in  Russia  ;  being 
placed  next  the  Czar  at  a  feast  given  to  him,  and 
treated  with  every  mark  of  honor  and  distinction. 
His  cargo  of  salt,  wine,  and  other  provisions,  were  all 
purchased  by  the  Czar  and  his  officers,  and  the 
skipper  himself,  and  each  of  his  sailors,  were  pre- 
sented with  a  handsome  sum  of  money. 

Soon  came  another  Dutch  ship,  and  afterwards 
an  English  one,  to  whose  officers  and  men  the  same 
presents  were  made. 

All  this  time  Charles  the  Twelfth  of  Sweden  was 
occupied  with  his  designs  against  Poland,  and  taking 
little  heed  of  the  operations  of  the  Czar.  When  his 
attention  was  called  to  the  great  city  growing  up  so 
rapidly  on  the  banks  of  the  Neva,  he  said,  "  Let 
Peter  amuse  himself  as  he  thinks  fit  in  building  his 
new  city.  I  shall  soon  find  time  to  take  it  from  him, 
and  to  put  his  wooden  houses  into  a  blaze. 

In  order  to  protect  his  infant  city,  Peter  (after 
sounding  the  depth  of  the  surrounding  water  himself) 
fixed  upon  a  spot  on  which  to  build  the  fort  of  Cron- 
stadt;  and  after  making  the  model  of  it  in  wood 
with  his  own  hands,  he  left  Menzikoff  to  superintend 
the  building  of  the  fort,  while  he  went  to  pass  the 
winter  in  Moscow,  where  his  presence  was  much 
needed. 


PETER   THE   GEEAT.  99 

He  hastened  the  progress  of  the  works  on  the 
Vozonitz  and  the  Don,  and  in  a  harbor  which  he  had 
caused  to  be  made  on  the  Palus  Maeotis,  or  the  Sea 
of  Azof. 

Now  when  the  Turkish  government  beheld  the 
warlike  preparations  which  were  going  on  so  near 
them,  they  were  much  alarmed,  and  sent  a  message 
of  complaint  to  the  Czar ;  but  Peter  replied  that  he 
was  as  much  master  in  his  own  dominions,  as  the 
Grand  Seigneur  was  in  Turkey  ;  and  that  if  he  chose 
to  make  the  Russian  power  respectable  on  the  Euxine 
sea,  it  was  no  cause  of  complaint  to  Turkey. 

In  the  spring  when  Peter  returned  to  St.  Peters- 
burg, he  found  his  fort  of  Cronstadt,  in  the  bosom  of 
the  sea,  completed;  and  having  furnished  it  with 
artillery,  he  turned  his  eyes  towards  Narva,  from 
which  he  had  been  driven,  you  remember,  by  Charles 
the  Twelfth. 

In  order  to  wipe  away  the  disgrace  he  had  suf- 
fered before  Narva,  he  determined  to  lay  siege  to  it 
once  more,  and  at  the  same  time  to  the  city  of  Derpt. 
Peter  was  constantly  going  from  one  place  to  the 
other,  to  give  orders  as  to  the  mode  of  attack,  and  to 
encourage  the  officers  and  soldiers. 

Having  heard  that  the  Swedish  general  Slippem- 
bac  (who,  you  remember,  so  nobly  defended  the  town  of 
Noteburg)  was  in  the  neighborhood  of  Derpt,  with  a 


100  THE   HISTORY   OF 

large  body  of  troops ;  and  expecting  every  moment 
that  he  would  appear  to  the  help  of  the  besieged 
town,  Peter  determined  to  try  the  effect  of  a  strata- 
gem, or  deception,  by  which  to  draw  the  Swedes 
from  the  town. 

In  a  short  time  two  regiments  of  foot,  and  one  of 
horse  composed  of  Russians,  in  the  uniform  and  having 
the  colors  of  the  Swedes,  came  up  as  if  to  the  help  of  the 
besieged  town.  They  to  all  appearance  attack  the 
Russians  vigorously ;  who  pretend  to  be  struck  with 
panic  and  to  fly.  The  garrison  rejoiced  at  what  they 
supposed  to  be  this  timely  aid,  and  at  the  dispersion  of 
the  enemy,  rush  from  the  town  to  join  the  pursuit; 
when  the  mock  enemy  join  with  the  pretended  fugi- 
tives and  turn  upon  them,  killing  great  numbers,  and 
so  terrifying  the  rest,  that  they  are  obliged  to  capitu- 
late and  surrender  the  town. 

Now  Peter  passed  on  to  Narva ;  which  town  he 
assaulted  most  vigorously,  and  soon  all  the  outworks 
were  taken,  and  the  besiegers  carrying  all  before 
them,  forced  their  way  into  the  town,  and  then  began 
one  of  those  terrible  scenes  of  cruelty  and  bloodshed, 
which  were  so  common  at  that  time  in  the  wars  of  the 
Swedes  and  Russians. 

But  here  the  character  of  Peter,  barbarian  as  he 
was,  appears  in  a  most  amiable  light.  At  least  for 
the  time  the  impulse  of  his  mind  seems  to  have  been 


PETER  THE   GREAT.  101 

towards  mercy ;  and  he  ran  from  place  to  place,  to 
save  life  and  to  check  the  cruelty  of  the  soldiers ;  and 
having  killed  two  of  the  ruffians  who  refused  to  obey 
his  orders,  he  entered  the  town-house  whither  the 
citizens  had  run  in  crowds  for  shelter,  and  throw- 
ing his  sword  wet  with  blood  upon  the  table,  he 
cried : 

"  This  sword  is  not  stained  with  the  blood  of  your 
fellow-citizens,  but  with  that  of  my  own  soldiers? 
which  I  have  spilt  to  save  your  lives." 

All  this  time,  while  the  Czar  Peter  was  every 
where  gaining  victories  over  the  Swedish  generals, 
Charles  the  Twelfth,  King  of  Sweden,  seemed  as  if 
blind  to  his  growing  strength  and  skill  in  the  art  of 
war,  and  was  busying  himself  in  making  and  de- 
throning kings  in  Poland. 

Augustus,  King  of  Poland,  was,  through  the  influ- 
ence of  Charles,  dethroned  by  his  people,  who  were 
obliged  by  this  monarch  to  declare  Stanislaus  Lec- 
zinski  king  in  his  stead.  Augustus  assembling  a  small 
force  still  true  to  him,  declared  Stanislaus  a  rebel 
and  a  traitor,  and  proceeded  to  fight  for  the  crown, 
which  had  been  so  rudely  snatched  from  his  head. 

Peter  who  now  had  a  fine  and  well  disciplined 
army,  and  was  able  at  length  to  meet  the  Swedes 
man  to  man,  sent  to  his  ally,  Augustus,  a  force  of 
twelve   thousand  men  ;    and  as  soon   as  Derpt  and 


102  THE   HISTORY    OF 

Narva  were   disposed  of,  he   hastened  with   a   still 
larger  body  of  troops,  to  the  assistance  of  Augustus. 

During  his  absence  a  Sweedish  fleet  put  to  sea 
with  the  intention  of  destroying  St.  Petersburg,  and 
the  fortress  of  Cronstadt,  which  was  but  just  finished. 
This  was  quite  a  formidable  fleet,  consisting  of  twenty- 
two  ships  of  war,  besides  six  frigates,  two  bomb- 
ketches,  and  two  fire-ships. 

From  these  vessels  a  numerous  body  of  troops 
landed  on  a  small  island,  to  prepare  for  the  attack ; 
but  a  Russian  colonel  who  commanded  a  regiment 
there,  ordered  his  men  to  lie  flat  on  their  faces,  while 
the  Swedes  were  coming  on  shore ;  and  then  rising 
suddenly,  they  threw  in  upon  them  so  brisk  and  well 
directed  a  fire,  that  the  Swedes  were  put  to  confusion, 
and  forced  to  retreat  hastily  to  their  ships,  leaving 
behind  them  all  their  dead,  and  more  than  three 
hundred  prisoners. 

Still  the  fleet  hovered  about  the  coast,  and  threat- 
ened the  newly-built  city;  the  troops  made  another 
descent,  but  were  driven  off  as  before,  and  a  large 
body  of  Swedish  soldiers  advanced  by  land,  but  they 
were  all  defeated,  and  driven  back.  They  therefore 
abandoned  the  attack,  and  St.  Petersburg  remained 
in  security. 

Numerous  battles  were  now  fought  between  the 
army  of  the  Czar  and  the  Swedish  troops,  in  those 


PETER   THE   GEEAT.  103 

provinces  bordering  on  the  Baltic  and  the  Gulf  of 
Finland,  it  being  still  the  great  aim  and  object  of 
Peter,  to  obtain  possession  of  the  forts  upon  those 
seas,  in  order  to  the  establishment  of  his  navy. 

In  some  of  these  battles  the  Swedes  were  victori- 
ous, in  others  the  Russians.  One  considerable  place 
taken  by  Peter,  Was  the  town  of  Mittau  in  the  pro- 
vince of  Courland  not  far  from  the  Gulf  of  Riga.  In 
the  Castle  of  Mittau  were  vaults,  where  the  Grand 
Dukes  of  Courland  were  buried. 

It  had  been  the  custom  with  the  Russian  troops, 
to  steal  or  destroy  whatever  they  could  lay  their 
hands  on,  after  taking  the  town  of  the  enemy ;  but  at 
the  battle  of  Narva,  Peter  made  such  alterations  in 
this  custom,  and  laid  such  strict  commands  upon  his 
soldiers  as  to  their  conduct  for  the  future,  that  from 
that  time  no  such  violence  was  committed. 

The  Russian  soldiers  finding  the  bodies  of  the 
dead  dragged  from  their  tombs  beneath  the  Castle  of 
Mittau,  and  stripped  of  their  clothing  and  jewels,  re- 
fused to  take  possession  of  the  post  till  a  Swedish  colo- 
nel had  been  sent  for,  who  gave  them  a  certificate 
that  this  outrage  had  been  committed  by  the  Swedes 
themselves. 

For  a  time  now  every  thing  seemed  to  conspire 
against  the  Czar.  Charles  the  Twelfth  was  carrying 
all  before  him ;  the  Russians  were  murmuring  and 


104  THE   HISTORY    OF 

discontented  with  the  restraint  which  the  new  state  of 
things  imposed  upon  them ;  there  were  insurrections 
in  parts  of  the  empire,  and  the  treasury  was  nearly 
exhausted.  But  all  these  misfortunes,  which  would 
have  discouraged  almost  any  other  monarch,  seemed 
only  to  rouse  Peter  to  new  efforts. 

He  hurried  from  one  part  of  the  empire  to 
another,  quelling  revolts,  silencing  complaints,  and 
securing  the  possession  of  places  he  had  already  taken. 
He  then  went  to  meet  the  dethroned  King  Augustus, 
to  comfort  him  under  his  misfortunes ;  promising  to 
revenge  his  cause,  and  after  presenting  him  with  men 
and  money,  he  returned  as  usual  to  pass  part  of  the 
winter  in  Moscow,  to  encourage  the  arts  and  sciences, 
and  to  enforce  his  new  laws  there. 


PETER   THE   GREAT.  105 


CHAPTER  X. 

Tidings  of  the  approach  of  Charles  the  Twelfth— Battle  of  Grodno— The 
disgraceful  course  of  Augustus — The  story  of  General  Patkul — His 
imprisonment  and  death — Indignation  of  the  Czar — The  throne  of 
Poland  declared  vacant— Designs  of  Stanislaus  and  Charles. 

Hardly  was  Peter  reeurned  to  Moscow,  when  tidings 
were  brought  that  Charles  the  Twelfth,  who  had  been 
every  where  victorious,  was  marching  to  attack  the 
Russian  troops  at  Grodno.  King  Augustus  had  fled 
before  him  in  great  haste,  and  had  taken  refuge  in 
Saxony  with  four  regiments  of  Russian  dragoons. 

Peter  hastened  to  his  assistance,  but  found  all  the 
avenues  to  Grodno  occupied  by  Swedish  troops, 
while  his  own  were  scattered.  But  without  being  in 
any  way  discouraged  by  this  state  of  things,  Peter  set 
about  raising  troops  to  aid  the  dethroned  monarch, 
and  joining  him,  he  gave  battle  to  the  Swedish 
army. 

Here  the  Russian  troops  suffered  a  terrible  defeat, 
in  a  great-  part  owing  to  the  conduct  of  a  French 
regiment  fighting  in  the  service  of  Augustus,  and 
5* 


106  THE   HISTORY   OF 

having  charge  of  the  artillery,  who,  when  they  saw 
the  army  of  Charles  approaching,  laid  down  their 
arms,  and  desired  to  enter  the  service  of  the  Swedish 
King. 

The  desertion  of  this  regiment  was  followed  by 
the  overthrow  of  the  Russian  army,  of  which  few 
men  saved  their  lives,  and  almost  all  were  wounded. 
Voltaire  says  that  it  is  pretended  by  the  Swedish  his- 
torian of  those  times,  that  the  Swedish  word  at  this 
battle  was,  "  In  the  name  of  God,"  and  that  of  the 
Russians,  "  Kill  all ;  "  but  he  says  it  was  the  Swedes 
who  killed  all  who  came  in  their  way. 

The  Czar  himself  says  that  a  great  number  of  his 
army  who  were  taken  prisoners,  were  murdered  in 
cold  blood,  three  days  after  the  battle.  A  Russian 
officer  being  hardly  pushed  by  the  enemy,  ran  for 
protection  to  King  Stanislaus,  wbo  had  formerly 
been  one  of  his  friends;  but  while  Stanislaus  held 
him  in  his  arms,  he  was  shot  dead  by  a  Swedish  Gen- 
eral. 

This  was  the  fourth  battle  the  Russians  had  lost 
against  the  Swedes,  who  had  also  gained  many  other 
victories  in  Poland.  Peter  now  busied  himself  in 
preparing  for  the  safety  of  his  army,  which  he  sent 
under  Prince  Menzikoff  as  far  south  as  Kiow.  He 
flew  from  one  place  to  another,  overseeing  the  re- 
pairs of  one  city,  putting  another  in  a  state  of  de- 


PETER  THE   GREAT.  107 

fence,  planning  new  conquests,    and   endeavoring   to 
assist  his  ally,  King  Augustus  of  Poland. 

But  now  Augustus  being  hardly  pursued  by  the 
victorious  Swedes,  and  flying  with  his  mother,  his 
wife,  and  his  son,  and  the  principal  nobility  of  his 
country,  determined  upon  a  course  so  mean  and  dis- 
graceful, as  to  consign  his  name  to  everlasting  in- 
famy. 

He  sues  for  peace,  treats  secretly  with  King 
Charles,  promises  to  give  up  for  ever  all  right  to  the 
crown  of  Poland,  and  to  acknowledge  Stanislaus  as 
lawful  king.  He  renounces  all  treaties  he  has  made 
with  Peter  the  Czar,  his  former  friend  and  ally,  and 
promises  to  deliver  up  all  Swedish  prisoners,  and 
deserters. 

But  the  crowning  disgrace  of  Augustus  was  the 
delivery  to  the  Swedish  king,  of  John  Patkul,  the 
ambassador  of  the  Czar,  a  brave  Russian  officer  who 
was  at  that  very  time  fighting  in  the  cause  of  Au- 
gustus. He  had  before  this,  on  some  false  pretence, 
caused  Patkul  to  be  arrested  and  thrown  into  prison. 

The  melancholy  history  of  this  unfortunate  officer 
has  left  a  stain  upon  the  character  of  Charles  the 
Twelfth,  which  nothing  can  wipe  out.  Charles  the 
Eleventh  had  been  very  severe  in  his  treatment  of  the 
Livonians,  to  whose  country  Patkul  belonged,   and 


108  THE   HISTORY    OF 

had  cut  off  many  of  their  privileges,  and  stripped 
them  of  part  of  their  estates. 

General  Patkul  was  the  one  selected  by  the  no- 
bility of  Livonia,  to  carry  an  account  of  their  griev- 
ances to  the  king,  and  to  beg  for  redress.  At  the 
head  of  six  Livonian  gentlemen,  he  waited  upon  the 
king,  and  in  respectful,  but  bold  and  manly  language, 
he  addressed  him,  and  claimed  that  their  former 
privileges  should  be  restored  to  his  countrymen. 

Charles  the  Eleventh,  who  could  play  the  hypo- 
crite to  perfection,  laid  his  hand  upon  the  shoulder  of 
Patkul  and  said,  "  You  have  spoken  for  your  coun- 
try like  a  brave  man,  and  I  esteem  you  for  it ;  go 
on."  Yet  in  a  few  days  after,  he  caused  this  very 
man  to  be  declared  guilty  of  high  treason,  and  as  such, 
to  be  condemned  to  death. 

Patkul  concealed  himself  for  a  time,  and  then 
made  his  escape  into  Poland,  where  he  was  admitted 
to  the  presence  of  King  Augustus,  from  whose  service 
he  passed  into  that  of  the  Czar,  by  whom  he  was  sent 
as  ambassador  to  the  court  of  Augustus,  after  Charles 
the  Twelfth  ascended  the  throne  of  Sweden. 

This  king  to  whom  he  was  sent  as  ambassador, 
and  in  whose  cause  he  was  bravely  fighting,  meanly, 
and  treacherously  seized  upon  his  person  to  grtaify  the 
malice  of  Charles  the  Twelfth,  which  still  pursued  the 


PETER   THE   GREAT.  109 

banished  man,  and  threw  him  into  prison  in  the  Castle 
of  Konigstein,  in  Saxony. 

When  Augustus  saw  that  one  of  the  conditions  of 
the  treaty  with  Charles  the  Twelfth,  was  that  Patkul 
should  he  delivered  up  to  him,  he  was  puzzled  what 
course  to  pursue.  The  Czar  on  the  one  hand  loudly 
insisted  that  his  ambassador  should  be  returned  to 
him,  while  Charles  threatened  him  with  terrible 
and  speedy  vengeance,  if  Patkul  were  not  delivered 
into  his  hands. 

Augustus  now,  in  the  hope  of  pacifying  both  these 
powerful  monarchs,  and  also  of  saving  his  own  honor, 
sends  his  guards  to  seize  the  unhappy  man,  and  de- 
liver him  into  the  power  of  the  King  of  Sweden. 
But  at  the  same  time  he  sends  secret  orders  to  the 
Governor  of  Konigstein  to  let  the  prisoner  escape. 
The  G-overnor,  however,  knowing  that  Patkul  was  rich, 
determined  not  to  let  him  escape  until  he  had  paid  a 
handsome  price  for  his  liberty. 

The  brave  Patkul  refused  to  pay  for  that  which 
was  his  right,  and  before  the  matter  was  settled,  the 
guards  sent  by  Augustus  arrived,  and  seizing  upon  the 
prisoner,  delivered  him  up  to  four  Swedish  officers ; 
by  whom  he  was  carried  to  the  general  quarters  of 
the  Swedish  army,  where  he  remained  for  three 
months,  tied  to  a  stake  with  a  heavy  iron  chain. 

Charles  the  Twelfth  forgetting  that  Patkul  was 


110  THE   HISTOEY    OF 

the  ambassador  of  the  Czar,  and  looking  upon  him 
only  as  his  own  subject  and  a  traitor,  ordered  a  coun- 
cil of  war  to  try  him  with  the  utmost  severity.  He 
was  condemned  to  be  broke  alive  upon  the  wheel,  and 
then  to  be  quartered. 

Patkul  was  engaged  to  be  married  to  a  beautiful 
and  lovely  lady  of  Saxony;  and  the  marriage  was  to 
have  taken  place  about  the  time  that  was  fixed  on  by 
King  Charles,  for  this  terrible  torture  and  death. 
"When  the  chaplain  entered  the  cell  of  the  prisoner, 
and  informed  him  that  he  was  sentenced  to  death, — 
though  he  told  him  not  of  the  terrible  manner  in  which 
it  was  to  be  executed — the  spirit  of  the  brave  man 
was  broken  ;  and  he  fell  upon  the  bosom  of  the  chap- 
lain, and  poured  out  his  agony  in  a  flood  of  tears. 

Weakened  by  his  long  confinement  in  prison,  and 
tortured  by  hope  deferred,  can  we  wonder  that  when 
thus  informed  of  the  end  of  all  his  hopes,  and  the 
blighting  of  his  most  .-cherished  plans,  this  man  who 
had  braved  death  in  so  many  battles,  should  have 
wept  like  a  child  ? 

He  begged  the  chaplain  to  wait  upon  the  lady  to 
whom  he  was  to  have  been  married,  to  give  her  all  the 
consolation  in  his  power,  and  to  tell  her  that  he  died 
full  of  tender  love  to  her.  When  he  was  brought  to 
the  place  of  punishment,  and  saw  the  wheels  and  stakes, 
the   truth   burst  upon  him  of  the   terrible  torture 


PETER  THE   GEEAT.  Ill 

though  which  he  was  to  pass,  and  the  fearful  death 
he%ras  to  die. 

Overcome  with  agony,  he  fell  into  the  arms  of  the 
minister  in  strong  convulsions  ;  the  good  man  kindly 
threw  his  cloak  over  him,  to  screen  him  from  the  eyes 
of  the  bystanders,  and  wept  over  him  as  he  embraced 
him.  Then  a  Swedish  officer  read  aloud  the  following 
sentence : 

"  This  is  to  declare,  that  it  is  the  express  order 
of  his  majesty,  our  most  merciful  lord,  that  this  man, 
who  is  a  traitor  to  his  country,  be  broke  upon  the 
wheel,  and  quartered,  in  order  to  atone  for  his  crimes  , 
and  to  be  an  example  to  others ;  that  every  one 
may  beware  of  treason,  and  faithfully  serve  his 
king."  At  the  words  "  most  merciful  lord,"  Patkul 
cried  out,  "  What  mercy  ?  "  and  at  those  of  "  traitor 
to  his  country," — "  Alas !  "  said  he,  "  I  have  served 
it  but  too  well." 

Stretched  and  bound  upon  the  dreadful  wheel,  he 
received  sixteen  blows,  and  suffered  the  longest  and 
most  excruciating  torture,  that  can  be  imagined. 
Thus  died  the  unfortunate  John  Remold  Patkul, 
ambassador  and  general  of  the  Emperor  of  Russia. 
Those  who  looked  upon  him  only  as  a  rebel  and 
traitor,  said  that  he  deserved  death ;  but  those  who 
considered  him  as  a  Livonian,  and  remembered  that 
he  had   been   banished,  because  he  had  boldly  de- 


112  THE   HISTORY    OP 

fended  the  rights  of  his  countrymen,  called  him  a 
martyr  to  the  liberties  of  his  country. 

It  was  in  1707  that  this  unfortunate  gentleman 
was  put  to  death.  According  to  his  sentence  his 
body  was  quartered,  and  his  mangled  limbs  remained 
exposed  upon  gibbets  till  1713  ;  when  Augustus  hav- 
ing regained  his  throne,  caused  these  relics  of  his  own 
perfidy  to  be  gathered  together.  They  were  brought 
to  Warsaw  in  a  box,  and  delivered  to  Augustus,  in 
the  presence  of  the  French  minister. 

Turning  to  him  Augustus  merely  said,  "These 
are  the  limbs  of  Patkul,"  without  any  other  remark ; 
and  no  one  else  dared  to  speak  upon  so  delicate  and 
mournful  a  subject.  • 

The  Czar  Peter  was  highly  indignant  at  this  bar- 
barous conduct  of  the  King  of  Sweden,  in  thus 
insulting  and  injuring  him,  in  the  person  of  his  am- 
bassador ;  and  at  the  cowardice  and  treachery  of  his 
ally,  Augustus.  He  wrote  to  the  principal  monarchs 
of  Europe,  complaining  of  this  violation  of  the  law 
of  nations.  By  some  of  his  counsellors,  it  was  pro- 
posed that  he  should  take  revenge  by  like  cruelties  upon 
the  Swedish  officers  who  were  prisoners  at  Moscow, 
but  Peter  rebuked  them  severely  for  such  a  sugges- 
tion. 

He  determined,  however,  to  revenge  himself  by 
following  up  the  plan  agreed  upon  between  Augustus 


PETEE   THE    GEEAT.  113 

and  himself  at  Grodno ;  to  leave  no  means  untried  to 
drive  Stanislaus  from  the  throne,  and  thus  overthow 
the  designs  of  Charles  on  Poland. 

For  this  purpose  the  Czar,  finding  that  Augustus 
had  renounced  his  protection  and  his  crown,  held 
several  conferences  with  certain  of  the  Polish 
nobility,  at  one  of  which  the  throne  of  Poland  was 
declared  vacant,  and  an  election  for  King  was  pro- 
posed. .Peter  had  taken  his  son  Alexis,  then  seven- 
teen years  of  age,  with  him  to  this  meeting;  hut  a 
report  having  been  circulated,  that  he  intended  to 
propose  his  son  as  a  candidate  for  the  throne  of  Po- 
land, he  sent  him  away  to  Moscow.  This  young 
prince,  the  history  of  whose  misfortunes  you  will  hear 
in  the  course  of  this  story,  was  the  son  of  Eudocia,  the 
first  wife  of  Peter,  who  still  remained  a  prisoner  in 
the  monastery  of  Susdal. 

Nothing  was  decided  upon  in  these  conferences, 
except  that  there  was  now  no  king  in  Poland,  over 
which  country  a  regent  was  appointed  to  rule  while 
others  were  "fighting  for  the  crown."  Stanislaus, 
however,  had  been  acknowledged  as  king  by  most  of 
the  sovereigns  of  Europe,  and  having  left  Charles  in 
Saxony,  was  now  advancing  into  Poland  with  a  large 
force,  and  was  received  as  lawful  king  in  every 
place  through  which  he  passed.  This  was  in  the  year 
1707. 


114  THE   HISTORY    OF 

While  Stanislaus  was  thus  advancing  into  Poland, 
Charles  the  Twelfth,  having  received  large  contribu- 
tions of  men  and  money  in  Saxony,  had  made  up  his 
mind  that  he  would  fight  the*  Czar  of  Russia  once 
more,  and  advanced  towards  his  dominions  with  an 
army  of  50,000  men ;  a  force  which  it  would  seem  im- 
possible for  the  Czar  to  withstand,  when  we  remember 
that  at  Narva  his  great  army  was  entirely  defeated  by 
eight  thousand  of  the  Swedes. 

There  had  been  an  effort  made  by  some  of  the 
powers  of  Europe  to  bring  about  a  reconciliation  be- 
tween the  King  of  Sweden  and  the  Czar,  but  Charles 
would  not  listen  to  such  a  suggestion.  He  replied 
proudly,  "  I  will  treat  with  the  Czar  in  Moscow." 
How  far  he  succeeded  in  carrying  out  this  bold 
threat,  we  shall  see  after  a  time.  It  was  on  this 
occasion  that  Peter  said,  <:  My  brother  Charles  wishes 
to  act  the  part  of  an  Alexander,  but  he  shall  not  find 
a  Darius  in  me,"  referring  to  the  victories  of  Alexan- 
der, to  his  pursuit  of  Darius  into  the  heart  of  his 
own  kingdom,  the  death  of  that  king,  and  the  de- 
struction of  the  Persian  empire. 


PETEE   THE   GREAT.  115 


CHAPTER  XL 

Charles  advances  towards  Eussia — The  peasants  and  their  ambassador — 
Escape  of  the  Czar  at  Grodno — A  terrible  march — The  passage  of  the 
river  Berezine— Battle  at  another  stream — Mysterious  change  in  the 
plans  of  Charles. 

It  was  in  the  month  of  August,  1707,  that  Charles 
the  Twelfth  of  Sweden  began  his  march  with  his 
50,000  troops,  from  Saxony  towards  Russia,  in  the 
full  confidence  that  he  should  every  where  be  victo- 
rious over  the  armies  of  the  Czar,  and  drive  him  to 
sue  for  peace  in  his  own  capital. 

The  road  through  which  he  passed  was  the  most 
difficult  he  could  have  chosen.  The  country  had  been 
ravaged  by  war,  and  was  bare  of  every  thing.  There 
were  morasses,  and  deserts,  and  forests,  to  be  passed, 
and  the  inhabitants,  who  had  concealed  themselves  in 
these  morasses,  determined  to  make  Charles  pay  well 
for  his  passage. 

Six  thousand  of  the  peasants,  therefore,  dispatched 
an  old  man  as  their  ambassador  to  speak  to  King 


116  THE   HISTORY    OF 

Charles.  This  old  man  was  a  very  extraordinary  figure, 
and  clothed  all  in  white,  and  armed  with  two  car- 
bines, he  advanced  before  King  Charles,  and  made 
the  speech  which  had  been  prepared  for  him. 

Some  of  the  Swedish  soldiers  who  stood  by,  not 
very  well  understanding  what  the  old  man  said,  made 
short  work  of  their  reply,  and  cut  him  down  and  killed 
him  before  the  King's  face,  while  in  the  midst  of  his 
harangue.  The  peasants  in  a  rage  flew  to  arms,  but 
what  could  these  poor  creatures  do  against  the  army 
of  the  King  of  Sweden  ? 

They  were  pursued  and  seized,  and  obliged  to 
hang  one  another ;  the  last  man  being  compelled  to 
put  a  rope  round  his  own  neck,  and  hang  himself; 
and  after  burning  all  their  houses  to  the  ground,  the 
great  army  passed  on.  We  could  hardly  believe  this 
story,  were  it  told  only  by  the  enemies  of  Charles,  but 
as  it  is  also  related  by  a  Swedish  historian,  who  was 
present,  we  see  no  reason  to  doubt  its  truth. 

In  the  month  of  January,  1708,  we  find  Peter  with 
a  body  of  troops  at  the  town  of  Grodno,  and  Charles 
advancing  through  the  frosts  and  snows  of  a  Russian 
winter  to  attack  that  place.  He  was  within  two 
leagues  of  the  town,  before  Peter  was  aware  of  his 
approach.  Charles,  hearing  just  then  that  the  Czar 
himself  was  at  Grodno,  took  eight  hundred  of  his 
troops,  and  set  out  in  all  haste  for  the  town. 


PETER  THE   GREAT.  117 

Through  a  mistake  of  one  of  his  officers,  the  Czar 
came  very  near  falling  into  the  hands  of  Charles.  As 
the  small  body  of  troops  approached  one  of  the  gates 
of  the  town,  a  G-erman  officer  who  commanded  there, 
supposing  of  course  that  the  whole  terrible  army  of 
the  King  of  Sweden  was  upon  them,  instead  of  dis- 
puting the  passage  with  them,  left  it  open,  and  took 
to  flight. 

The  alarm  now  spread  through  the  whole  town. 
The  few  Russians  who  made  any  resistance  were  cut 
to  pieces,  and  the  Czar  was  assured  by  all  his  officers 
that  the  victorious  army  had  made  itself  master  of  the 
place.  Hereupon  Peter  thought  it  best  to  retreat,  and 
Charles  planted  a  guard  of  thirty  men  at  the  very 
gate  through  which  the  Czar  had  just  retired  with 
two  thousand  of  his  troops. 

That  very  day  Peter  was  informed  by  a  Polish 
deserter  that  he  had  fled  before  only  eight  hundred 
men,  and  that  the  main  body  of  the  Swedish  troops 
was  still  some  leagues  distant.  He  immediately  re- 
turned, and  forced  the  Swedish  guards  to  give  way. 
An  engagement  took  place  in  the  streets  and  public 
places  of  the  city  of  Grodno,  and  no  doubt  the  Czar 
would  have  driven  the  troops  of  Charles  from  the 
town,  had  not  the  whole  Swedish  army  just  then 
appeared  in  sight.     The   Czar  was  now   obliged   to 


118  THE   HISTORY    OF 

leave  the  town  in  the  hands  of  that  victorious  King 
who  made  all  Poland  tremble. 

From  the  town  of  Grodno  to  the  river  Boristhenes, 
(now  the  Dneiper,)  there  is  nothing  but  morasses, 
deserts,  and  immense  forests,  which  the  Swedes  who 
pursued  the  Czar  were  obliged  to  cut  down  as  they 
went,  in  order  to  clear  a  passage  for  the  troops  and 
baggage.  This  part  of  the  country  was  also  subject 
to  epidemical  disorders,  which  had  been  spread  by 
poverty  and  famine.  Peter  posted  his  troops  so  as  to 
command  the  passes  of  the  rivers ;  guarded  all  his 
important  posts  ;  and  did  all  in  his  power  to  impede 
the  march  of  the  enemy. 

He  sent  a  large  body  of  troops  to  lay  waste  and 
destroy  the  country  through  which  Charles  must 
pass ;  and  then  retreating,  he  gradually  led  the 
Swedish  troops  into  that  part  of  the  country  from 
which,  if  defeated,  he  would  find  it  almost  impossible 
to  retreat,  while  his  own  army,  in  case  of  being 
obliged  to  retreat,  would  have  a  country  to  pass 
through  which  would  afford  plenty  of  subsistence. 

After  being  detained  by  continual  rains,  and  the 
many  other  obstacles  which  hindered  his  march, 
Charles  found  himself  in  the  month  of  May,  on  the 
banks  of  the  little  river  Berezine,  not  many  miles 
from  the  Dneiper.  Here,  in  sight  of  the  Russians 
posted  on  the  opposite  bank,  he  threw  a  bridge  over 


PETER  THE   GEEAT.  119 

the  stream,  crossed  it  with  his  army,  beat  the  Russians 
who  guarded  the  passage,  and  soon  reached  another 
little  river,  where  the  Czar  had  posted  a  large  body  of 
troops  to  check  his  progress. 

This  little  river  was  only  a  brook  in  dry  weather, 
but  at  this  time  it  was  swollen  by  the  rains  to  a  deep 
and  rapid  stream.  On  the  other  side  was  a  morass, 
behind  which  the  Russians  had  thrown  an  entrench- 
ment, defended  by  a  large  and  deep  ditch,  and  cov- 
ered by  a  parapet,  lined  with  artillery. 

It  must  have  required  some  little  courage  to  deter- 
mine thus  to  cross  a  rapid  river,  and  to  wade  a  marshy 
swamp,  with  an  army,  exposed  all  the  time  to  a  vigor- 
ous fire  from  the  artillery  of  the  enemy.  But  Charles 
the  Twelfth  never  stopped  to  deliberate  upon  the  cir- 
cumstances surrounding  him,  to  inquire  into  the  con- 
dition of  his  enemy,  or  to  think  of  fear.  He  went 
on  the  principle  that  the  Swedes  could  not  be  beaten. 

Seeing  his  men  busy,  according  to  the  customs  of 
war,  in  preparing  pontoons,  and  erecting  batteries  to 
cover  their  passage,  he  cried  out,  "  When  will  you 
have  done  with  this  trifling  ?  "  and  flung  himself  into 
the  river,  followed  by  his  regiment  of  guards.  The 
water  was  as  high  as  their  shoulders,  but  their  num- 
bers broke  the  force  of  the  current,  and  thus  in  the 
face  of  the  fire  of  the  Russians,  they  forded  the  river, 
and  waded  the  marsh. 


120  THE  HISTORY   OF 

The  Swedish  army  then  drew  up,  and  attacked  the 
Russians,  seven  different  times,  and  it  was  not  until 
the  seventh  attack,  that  the  Russians  gave  way.  It 
was  now  plain  that  the  Czar  had  succeeded  in  disci- 
plining his  troops ;  and  this  victory,  while  it  covered 
Charles  Twelfth  with  glory,  should  have  assured 
him  that  it  might  yet  be  a  difficult  matter  for  him  to 
succeed  in  his  expedition  in  this  distant  country, 
where  his  army  must  wade  rivers,  and  march  through 
woods  and  swamps,  fighting  every  step  of  the  way, 
against  an  army  every  day  becoming  better  fitted  to 
oppose  their  march. 

But  the  Swedes,  being  accustomed  to  carry  all 
before  them,  dreaded  neither  danger  nor  fatigue.  The 
Russians,  driven  from  all  their  posts,  retreated,  and 
crossed  the  Boristhenes,  or  Dneiper,  which  river  was 
then  the  eastern  boundary  of  Poland,  and  divided 
that  country  from  Russia. 

In  his  pursuit  of  the  Czar,  Charles  Twelfth 
paused  at  the  little  town  of  Mohilow,  on  the  Dneiper, 
the  very  last  town  in  Poland,  on  the  boundary  of 
Russia,  and  which,  like  all  frontier  towns,  belonged 
sometimes  to  one  country  and  sometimes  to  the 
other.  It  was  expected  by  his  own  army  and  by  the 
Russians  that  Charles  would  now  push  on  directly  to 
the  City  of  Moscow,  to  carry  out  his  threat  of  forcing 
the  Czar  to  make  peace  in  his  own  capital ;    but  to 


PETEB  THE   GEEAT.  121 

the  astonishment  alike  of  friends  and  foes,  Charles 
now  determined  to  turn  towards  the  Ukraine,  the 
country  of  the  Cossacks,  a  region  lying  in  the  south- 
ern part  of  Russia.  What  tempted  him  to  take  this 
step  no  one  could  imagine.  It  was  going,  as  it  seemed, 
towards  certain  destruction,  and  indeed  proved  the 
ruin  of  Charles  and  his  army.  But  the  mystery  was 
soon  explained. 


122  THE  HISTORY   OF 


CHAPTER  XII. 

Mazeppa— An  explanation  of  the  conduct  of  King  Charles— Difficulties 
of  the  march — Mazeppa  appears,  and  how— The  Czar  attacks  the 
Swedes  under  Lewenhaupt— A  three  days'  battle,  and  its  result. 

Did  you  ever  read  Byron's  story  of  Mazeppa,  the 
General,  or  Hetman,  as  he  was  called,  of  the  Cos- 
sacks, who,  having  fallen  in  love  with  the  wife  of  a 
Polish  gentleman,  was  seized  by  the  husband,  and 
bound  naked  upon  a  wild  horse  ?  The  horse,  which 
was  brought  out  of  Ukrania,  returned  to  his  own 
country,  and  carried  along  with  him  the  unfortunate 
man,  half  dead  with  hunger  and  fatigue. 

Mazeppa  is  represented  by  Byron  as  telling  the 
story  to  Charles  Twelfth  one  night  in  a  forest, 
where  they  had  sunk  down  exhausted,  while  flying 
from  the  Russians  after  the  battle  of  Pultowa. 
Charles  compliments  Mazeppa  upon  his  care  of  his 
horse,  and  his  fine  horsemanship,  when  the  old  Hetman 
remarks, 


PETER  THE  GREAT.  123 

"  111  betide 
The  school  wherein  I  learned  to  ride." 

Charles  insists  upon  knowing  to  what  he  alludes. 
Mazeppa  then  proceeds  to  tell  the  story  of  his  love, 
long  years  ago,  when  he  was  a  youth  in  Poland,  of 
the  jealousy  of  the  Count  Palatine,  and  of  his  strange 
and  terrible  mode  of  vengeance. 

"  Bring  forth  the  horse  ! — the  horse  was  brought, 

In  truth  he  was  a  noble  steed, 

A  Tartar  of  the  Ukraine  breed, 
"Who  look'd  as  though  the  speed  of  thought 

Were  in  his  limbs  :  but  he  was  wild, 
Wild  as  the  wild  deer,  and  untaught, 

With  spur  and  bridle  undefiled — 
'Twas  but  a  day  he  had  been  caught ; 

And  snorting,  with  erected  mane, 

And  struggling  fiercely,  but  in  vain, 

In  the  full  foam  of  wrath  and  dread, 

To  me  the  desert-born  was  led ; 

They  bound  me  on,  that  menial  throng, 

Upon  his  back  with  many  a  thong ; 

Then  loosed  him  with  a  sudden  lash ! 

Away !  away !  and  on  we  dash ! 

Torrents  less  rapid,  and  less  rash. 
******* 

"  Away,  away,  my  steed  and  I, 
Upon  the  pinions  of  the  wind, 
All  human  dwellings  left  behind ; 

******* 

Town— village — none  were  on  our  track, 


124  THE   HISTORY   OF 

.  But  a  wild  plain  of  far  extent, 
And  bounded  by  a  forest  black ; 
But  fast  we  fled,  away,  away, 
And  I  could  neither  sigh  nor  pray ; 
And  my  cold  sweat-drops  fell  like  rain 
Upon  the  courser's  bristling  mane. 

We  rustled  through  the  leaves  like  wind, 
Left  shrubs,  and  trees,  and  wolves,  behind ; — 
By  night  I  heard  them  on  our  track ; 
Their  troop  came  hard  upon  our  back, 
With  their  long  gallop,  which  can  tire 
The  hound's  deep  hate,  and  hunter's  fire : 
Where'er  we  flew,  they  followed  on, 
Nor  left  us  with  the  morning  sun." 

And  thus,  through  forests,  and  deserts,  struggling 
through  marshes,  and  swimming  the  deep,  rapid 
rivers,  the  wild  horse  carries  Mazeppa,  into  the 
country  of  the  Ukraine. 

The  Cossacks  of  the  country  were  kind  to  him, 
and  gave  him  assistance,  and  he  remained  among 
them,  and  became  so  famous  in  fighting  for  them 
against  their  enemies,  the  Tartars,  that  the  Czar  at 
length  made  him  Prince  of  Ukrania.  Gratitude 
should  have  bound  him  to  his  master,  but  for  some 
fancied  slight  received  from  Peter,  this  old  man  of 
seventy  turned  against  him,  betrayed  his  benefactor, 
and  took  up  the  cause  of  Charles  of  Sweden,  hoping 


PETER  THE  GREAT.  125 

that  lie  would  be  able  to  induce  his  whole  nation  to 
join  in  the  rebellion. 

It  was  Mazeppa  then,  who  had  induced  Charles 
to  turn  from  his  road  to  Moscow,  by  promising  him 
provisions,  ammunition,  and  artillery,  and  that  the 
people  of  the  Ukraine  would  receive  him  with  open 
arms,  and  look  upon  him  as  their  liberator  from  the 
oppression  of  Russia. 

Charles  now  was  certain  of  being  able  to  subdue 
the  Russian  empire,  after  being  joined  by  so  warlike 
a  people  as  the  Cossacks.  He  expected  to  be  joined 
by  an  army  of  sixteen  or  seventeen  thousand  men, 
from  Livonia,  under  General  Lewenhaupt,  who  was  to 
bring  with  him  also  a  great  quantity  of  warlike  stores 
and  provisions. 

He  never  took  the  trouble  to  reflect  whether  the 
Czar  was  within  reach  of  this  army,  and  might  possi- 
bly cut  off  these  expected  supplies.  He  took  no  pains 
to  find  out  whether  Mazeppa  was  in  a  condition  to 
fulfil  his  promises,  whether  he  had  influence  enough 
to  carry  with  him  his  whole  nation,  or  whether  his 
own  army  was  provided  for  in  case  any  of  these 
promised  helps  should  fail ;  but  imagined  that  even 
if  Mazeppa  should  prove  faithless,  he  could  trust  to 
his  own  good  fortune. 

And  so  Charles  passed  on  beyond  the  Dneiper, 
towards  the   Desna,   between  which   two   rivers  he 


126  THE  HISTORY   OP 

expected  to  meet  Mazeppa,  accompanied  by  thirty 
thousand  men,  and  bringing  stores  and  provisions, 
and  all  his  treasures,  which  were  immense.  The 
officers  of  Charles,  who  knew  nothing  of  this  treaty 
with  the  Cossacks,  or  why  he  thus  turned  from  his 
proposed  route,  continued  their  march  with  grief  and 
distress. 

Charles  sent  out  orders  to  General  Lewenhaupt 
to  bring  all  his  troops  and  provisions  with  haste  into 
Ukrania,  as  he  intended  to  pass  the  winter  there,  that 
he  might  the  more  easily  conquer  the  whole  country  of 
Russia  in  the  spring. 

The  difficulties  and  obstacles  they  had  before  met 
with,  were  as  nothing  compared  with  those  which  now 
opposed  their  progress.  They  were  obliged  to  cross 
a  marshy  forest  one  hundred  and  fifty  miles  in  length. 
The  army  strayed  from  the  right  road,  and  had 
marched  four  days  before  Charles  discovered  his 
mistake.  It  took  them  a  long  time  to  regain  the 
main  road,  and  they  then  found  that  they  had  lost 
nearly  all  their  artillery  and  wagons,  which  were 
quite  sunk  in  the  mud* 

At  last,  after  a  terrible  march  of  twelve  days, 
during  which  they  had  eaten  every  thing  in  the  way 
of  provisions  that  they  had  taken  with  them,  the 
army,  exhausted  with  hunger  and  fatigue,  reached  the 
banks  of  the  Desna,  at  the  very  spot  where  Mazeppa 


PETER  THE  GREAT.  127 

had  appointed  to  meet  them.  But  instead  of  finding 
there  the  Hetman  of  the  Cossacks  with  his  powerful 
army,  what  was  their  surprise  to  see  on  the  other  side 
of  the  river,  a  body  of  Russians  awaiting  their 
approach. 

King  Charles,  though  much  astonished,  determined 
at  once  to  cross  the  Desna,  and  attack  the  enemy.  The 
banks  of  the  river  were  so  steep  that  they  were 
obliged  to  let  down  the  soldiers,  man  by  man,  with 
ropes.  The  river  was  crossed  by  the  army,  some  on 
floats  hastily  put  together,  and  others  by  swimming. 
The  body  of  Russians  not  being  more  £han  eight 
thousand  men,  made  little  resistance,  and  soon  gave 
gave  way  before  the  advancing  Swedes. 

Charles  advanced  further  into  this  desolate  coun- 
try, uncertain  of  his  road,  and  wondering  what  had 
become  of  Mazeppa.  At  length  the  Hetman  of  the 
Cossacks  appeared,  but  more  like  a  fugitive  begging 
for  assistance,  than  the  powerful  ally  they  expected. 
His  design  had  been  discovered,  the  Russians  had 
fallen  upon  the  Cossacks,  and  cut  them  in  pieces. 
Thirty  of  his  principal  friends,  having  been  taken 
sword  in  hand,  had  been  broken  on  the  wheel. 

His  towns  had  been  burned  to  the  ground,  his 
treasures  stolen,  his  provisions  seized;  and  it  was 
with  the  greatest  difficulty  that  he  himself  escaped 


128  THE   HISTORY   OF 

with  six  thousand  men,  and  some  horses,  laden  with 
gold  and  silver. 

This  is  one  account  given  by  Voltaire,  of  the 
reason  of  the  forlorn  condition  of  Mazeppa  when  he  at 
length  joined  King  Charles.  I  find  in  another  history, 
however,  that  this  same  Voltaire  gives  a  different 
account  of  the  same  matter.  He  says  that  Mazeppa 
set  out  from  his  own  country  with  fifteen  or  sixteen 
thousand  of  his  people,  having  induced  them  to  join 
him  by  telling  them  that  they  were  going  against  the 
King  of  Sweden.  But  when  they  came  within  a  few 
leagues  of  the  Desna,  he  made  them  acquainted  with 
his  real  design. 

These  brave  people,  he  says,  heard  him  with  dis- 
dain, and  refused  to  betray  a  monarch  against  whom 
they  had  no  cause  of  complaint.  They  accordingly 
returned  home,  and  sent  the  Czar  an  account  of  the 
desertion  of  their  chief  to  the  Swedish  army. 

Then  the  Russians  went  down,  and  seized  upon 
all  Mazeppa's  treasures,  and  a  large  magazine,  which 
was  intended  for  the  use  of  the  King  of  Sweden.  The 
Cossacks  chose  another  Hetman ;  Mazeppa  was  pub- 
licly excommunicated  ;  after  which,  he  was  hanged  in 
effigy ;  and  those  of  his  friends  who  could  be  seized, 
were  broken  on  the  wheel.  Which  of  these  stories  is 
the  true  one,  I  cannot  tell ;  but  as  far  as  Charles  the 
Twelfth  was  concerned,  the  result  was  the  same. 


PETER   THE   GREAT.  129 

Charles  hoped  that  this  disappointment  would  be 
made  up  by  the  arrival  of  General  Lewenhaupt,  with 
his  fifteen  thousand  Swedes,  ammunition  and  supplies. 
At  length,  however,  this  General  arrived,  in  much  the 
same  condition  as  Mazeppa.  The  order  to  join  King 
Charles  had  not  reached  him  by  twelve  days  as  soon 
as  it  should  have  done.  As  soon  as  possible  after  he 
received  it,  however,  he  began  his  march. 

The  Czar,  who  knew  of  his  movements,  allowed 
him  to  pass  the  Dneiper,  and  as  soon  as  his  army  got 
between  that  river  and  the  smaller  ones  that  empty 
into  it,  he  crossed  over  and  attacked  him  with  his 
united  forces.  General  Lewenhaupt,  who  had  only 
fifteen  thousand  men,  and  who  firmly  believed  that 
the  Czar  had  an  army  of  forty  thousand,  (though  in 
reality  it  was  only  half  that  number,)  did  not  hesitate 
to  advance  against  the  Russians,  and  give  them  battle. 

At  the  first  attack,  the  Swedes  killed  fifteen  hun- 
dred Russians.  The  Czar's  army  was  then  thrown 
into  great  confusion,  and  fled  on  all  sides.  The 
Emperor  of  Russia  saw  himself  on  the  point  of  being 
entirely  defeated.  He  well  knew  that  the  safety  of 
his  kingdom  depended  on  the  fate  of  that  day,  and 
that  he  should  be  utterly  ruined  should  he  suffer 
Lewenhaupt  to  join  the  King  of  Sweden  with  a 
large  army. 

The  moment  the  Czar  saw  his  troops  begin  to 
6* 


130  THE  HISTORY   OF 

flinch,  he  ran  to  the  rear  guard,  where  the  Cossacks 
and  Calmucks  were  posted,  and  cried  out  to  them : 
11 1  charge  you  to  fire  upon  every  man  that  runs  away, 
and  even  to  kill  me  if  I  should  be  so  cowardly  as  to 
fly." 

He  then  endeavored  to  rally  his  forces,  and  con- 
tinue the  battle ;  but  Lewenhaupt,  preferring  rather 
to  join  his  master  than  to  lose  time  by  the  way  in 
fighting,  chose  to  continue  his  march.  The  next 
morning  the  Czar  attacked  him  near  a  morass,  and 
extended  his  lines  with  a  view  to  surround  him. 

The  Swedes  faced  about  on  all  sides,  and  the 
battle  was  kept  up  for  two  hours,  with  great  courage 
and  obstinacy  on  both  sides.  The  loss  of  the  Rus- 
sians was  three  times  greater  than  that  of  the  Swedes, 
but  they  still  kept  their  ground,  and  the  victory 
remained  undecided. 

In  the  afternoon,  the  army  of  the  Czar  received 
the  addition  of  a  fresh  body  of  troops.  The  battle 
then  began  again  for  the  third  time  with  more 
fury  and  eagerness  than  ever,  and  lasted  until  night 
put  an  end  to  the  combat.  At  last  the  Swedes  were 
routed,  and  driven  back  to  their  baggage. 

General  Lewenhaupt  rallied  his  troops  behind 
the  wagons ;  the  Swedes  were  beaten,  but  they 
scorned  to  fly.  They  were  still  about  nine  thousand 
in  number,  and  not  so  much  as  one  man  deserted. 


PETER  THE  GREAT.  131 

The  General  drew  them  up  with  as  much  ease  as  if 
they  had  not  been  conquered. 

The  Czar  remained  all  night  under  arms,  and  for- 
bade his  officers  on  pain  of  disgrace,  and  his  soldiers 
on  pain  of  death,  to  leave  their  ranks  for  the  sake  of 
plundering  the  bodies  of  the  dead.  Next  morn- 
ing the  battle  began  again.  Lewenhaupt  had  retired 
a  few  miles  to  a  fine  situation  for  his  army,  after 
having  spiked  his  cannon,  and  set  fire  to  his  wagons. 

The  Russians  arrived  in  time  to  seize  upon  about 
six  thousand  wagons,  before  they  were  burned.  The 
Czar,  determined  on  the  total  defeat  of  the  Swedes, 
sent  one  of  his  Generals  to  attack  them  for  the  fifth 
time.  The  General  offered  them  honorable  terms,  if 
they  would  surrender.  Lewenhaupt  refused,  and 
fought  a  fifth  battle,  as  bloody  as  any  of  the  for- 
mer. 

Of  the  nine  thousand  soldiers  he  had  left,  he  lost 
about  one-half  in  this  action,  and  the  other  remained 
unbroken.  At  last,  night  coming-  on,  Lewenhaupt, 
after  having  sustained  five  battles  against  the  army  of 
the  Czar,  passed  the  river  Sossa,  with  about  five 
thousand  soldiers  that  remained. 

The  Czar  lost  about  ten  thousand  men  in  those 
five  engagements,  in  which  he  had  the  glory  of  con- 
quering the  Swedes,  and  Lewenhaupt  that  of  disputing 


132  THE  HISTORY   OF 

the  victory  for  three  days,  and  of  effecting  a  retreat 
without  being  obliged  to  surrender. 

Thus  he  at  length  reached  the  camp  of  Charles, 
with  the  honor  of  having  made  a  noble  defence,  and 
cutting  his  way  through  unheard  of  dangers,  but 
bringing  with  him  neither  ammunition  nor  an  army. 


PETER   THE   GREAT.  133 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

Sad  plight  of  Charles  and  his  army— Obstinacy  of  the  King— The  Czar's 
offer  to  Mazeppa— Pultowa— The  siege  and  the  battle— Accident  to 
King  Charles— The  dinner  in  the  Czar's  tent— The  way  the  Czar 
treated  his  "  masters  in  the  art  of  war." 

Charles  was  now  in  an  unfortunate  plight.  He  was  cut 
off  from  all  communication  with  Poland,  surrounded  by 
enemies,  and  in  the  heart  of  a  country  where  he  had 
nothing  to  depend  upon  but  his  own  courage  and 
skill.  And  now  came  on  the  winter  of  1709,  far 
more  terrible  in  that  country  than  with  us.  Charles 
the  Twelfth,  still  bent  on  making  all  the  Ukraine 
declare  for  him,  passed  on  into  that  country,  making 
long  marches  in  that  bitter  cold  weather,  with  men 
almost  naked,  and  with  no  boots  or  shoes. 

They  were  so  far  from  Sweden  that  they  could  no 
longer  hear  from,  or  send  messages  home.  In  this 
condition,  only  one  officer  ventured  to  complain. 

"  What !  "  said  the  king  to  him,  "  are  you  uneasy 
at  being  so  far  from  your  wife  1  If  you  are  a  good 
soldier,  I  will  lead  you  to  such  a  distance  that  you 


134  THE   HISTORY   OF 

shall  hardly  be  able  to  receive  news  from  Sweden 
once  in  three  years."  Cold  comfort  this,  for  the  poor 
home-sick  soldier. 

•  One  day  a  soldier  ventured,  in  the  presence  of 
the  whole  army,  to  hand  to  the  King,  with  an  air  of 
complaint,  a  piece  of  bread,  black  and  mouldy,  made 
of  barley  and  oats,  which  was  all  the  food  they  then 
had,  and  of  which,  even,  they  had  not  enough.  The 
king  took  it  coolly,  ate  it  up,  and  then  said  to  the 
soldier,  "  It  is  not  good,  but  it  may  be  eaten." 

Thus,  by  partaking  uncomplainingly  of  all  their 
hardships,  and  faring  no  better  in  any  respect  than 
the  common  soldiers,  Charles  .won  the  respect  and 
confidence  of  his  followers,  and  silenced  all  attempts 
at  complaint.  In  this  deplorable  situation,  Count 
Piper,  one  of  the  Generals  of  Charles,  who  never 
gave  his  master  any  but  wise  and  good  advice,  urged 
him  to  pause  at  a  little  town  which  they  had  reached 
in  the  Ukraine,  and  intrench  his  army  there,  where 
he  might  get  supplies  by  the  aid  of  Mazeppa,  till 
the  terrible  cold  was  over. 

But  Charles  replied  that  he  was  not  a  person  to 
shut  himself  up  in  a  town.  Piper  then  begged  him 
to  return  to  Poland,  and  put  his  troops  into  winter 
quarters.  But  with  his  usual  obstinacy,  Charles 
refused.  He  said  this  would  be  flying  before  the 
Czar,  which  he  could  not  consent  to  do ;  that  the 


PETER  THE   GREAT.  135 

season  would  soon  grow  milder,  when  he  must  reduce 
the  Ukraine,  and  march  on  to  Moscow. 

In  January  the  cold  became  so  intense  that  both 
armies  were  obliged  to  remain  inactive,  but  on  the 
1st  of  February  they  began  fighting  again,  in  the 
midst  of  frost  and  snow.  Charles  crossed  the  whole 
country  of  the  Ukraine,  burning  villages  wherever  he 
went,  and  laying  waste  the  entire  region  through 
which  he  passed.  Peter  kept  a  strict  eye  on  all  his 
motions,  and  saw  the  Swedish  army  dwindling  away 
by  degrees. 

In  the  month  of  April,  Charles  found  his  army 
reduced  to  eighteen  thousand  men.  These  were  kept 
from  perishing  with  hunger  by  the  supplies  brought 
them  by  Mazeppa.  At  this  time  the  Czar  made  pro- 
posals to  Mazeppa  to  return  to  his  duty,  and  submit 
to  his  authority  again. 

But  Mazeppa,  perhaps  fearing  the  punishment  of 
the  wheel,  by  which  his  friends  had  suffered,  or  per- 
haps determined  to  revenge  their  death,  remained 
true  to  his  new  friends,  and  refused  to  return  to  the 
service  of  the  Czar. 

Charles  now  having  passed  the  country  of  the 
Ukraine,  found  himself  in  a  region  where  he  could 
get  no  provisions  for  his  army,  and  was  at  length 
obliged  to  face  about,  and  return  upon  his  steps  over 
the  very  country  he  had  just  been  laying  waste.     His 


136  THE   HISTORY    OF 

suffering  and  starving  army  swept  away  the  few  re- 
maining cattle  from  the  peasantry,  who,  in  return, 
murdered  the  soldiers,  whenever  they  were  strong 
enough  to  contend  with  them. 

Thus,  for  three  months,  Charles  continued  fool- 
ishly marching,  and  returning  upon  his  steps,  while 
his  army  were  daily  wasting  in  numbers  and  strength. 
In  the  month  of  May,  he  reached  a  little  river  on 
which  stands  the  town  of  Pultowa,  a  place  that  had 
been  garrisoned  by  the  Russians,  and  was  filled  with 
an  abundance  of  provisions  and  ammunition. 

From  this  town  there  are  many  passes  through  the 
mountains,  leading  to  the  high  road  to  Moscow,  and 
as  Charles  was  still  bent  on  bringing  the  Czar  to 
make  conditions  of  peace  in  the  capital  of  his  empire, 
he  concluded  that  the  first  step  towards  that  end  would 
be  the  taking  of  the  town  of  Pultowa.  With  this  view, 
he  laid  siege  to  it  with  his  eighteen  thousand  Swedes, 
in  the  beginning  of  May,  1709. 

It  was  here  that  Peter  expected  him.  He  had 
arranged  the  different  divisions  of  his  army  at  short 
distances  from  each  other,  so  that  they  might  all 
join  together  easily,  to  march  against  the  besiegers. 
He  had  visited  all  the  southern  countries  of  Russia, ' 
and  the  harbors  on  the  river  Don,  and  the  sea  of  Azof, 
and  had  been  employing  himself  in  repairing  forts, 


PETER  THE   GEE  AT.  137 

cleansing  harbors,  and  building  ships,  and  thus  pre- 
paring for  the  defence  of  his  dominions. 

As  soon  as  he  heard  that  the  army  of  Charles 
had  laid  siege  to  the  town  of  Pultowa,  Peter  hastened 
to  gather  his  forces.  The  horse,  dragoons,  infantry, 
Cossacks,  and  Calmucks,  gathered  from  different 
quarters.  His  army  was  well  provided  with  necessa- 
ries of  every  kind,  cannon  and  ammunition  of  all 
kinds,  provisions,  and  even  medicines  for  the  sick.  In 
all  these  he  had  the  advantage  of  Charles. 

On  the  15th  day  of  June,  Peter  appeared  before 
Pultowa,  with  an  army  of  sixty  thousand  men.  He 
at  once  sent  Menzikoff  with  a  body  of  troops,  to  pre- 
tend he  was  about  to  offer  battle  to  the  besiegers, 
who  left  their  trenches  to  meet  the  coming  enemy. 
By  that  means  Menzikoff  was  able  to  throw  into  the 
place  a  large  number  of  troops  to  assist  in  its  de- 
fence. 

When  Charles  discovered  this  manoeuvre,  he  could 
not  help  saying,  M  I  see  well  that  we  have  taught  the 
Muscovites  the  art  of  war."  And  now  began  the 
battle  which  was  to  decide  the  fate  of  Russia, 
Poland,  and  Sweden,  and  of  the  two  most  famous 
monarchs  then  in  the  world,  on  whom  the  eyes  of  all 
Europe  were  fixed. 

Charles  the  Twelfth  was  illustrious  for  nine  years 
of  victories ;  Peter,  for  nine  years  of  fatigue,  spent 


138  THE   HISTOEY   OF 

in  training  up  his  troops,  that  they  might  equal  the 
Swedes.  Charles  famous  for  having  given  away 
dominions ;  Peter  for  having  civilized  his  own.  Charles 
in  love  with  danger,  and  fighting  only  for  glory ;  Peter 
never  flying  from  danger,  and  fighting  only  for  interest. 
Charles  had  the  title  of  invincible,  (or  unconquerable,) 
of  which  one  unhappy  moment  robbed  him;  the 
world  had  given  Peter  the  title  of  Great,  not  for  his 
victories,  but  for  having  polished  a  savage  nation. 

On  the  27th  day  of  May,  which  happened  to  be 
his  birth-day,  Charles  went  out  to  see  for  himself  the 
condition  of  the  enemy,  and  as  he  was  returning  to 
his  camp,  he  received  a  shot  which  pierced  his  boot, 
and  shattered  the  bones  of  his  heel.  His  suffering 
was  intense,  but  no  one  perceived  the  slightest  change 
in  his  countenance,  and  he  continued  twelve  hours  on 
horseback,  giving  orders  to  his  oflicers  with  the 
greatest  composure. 

One  of  his  servants,  noticing  the  blood  trickling 
from  the  sole  of  the  king's  boot,  hastened  to  call 
the  surgeons,  and  the  pain  had  now  become  so  intense, 
that  they  were  obliged  to  lift  him  from  his  horse, 
and  carry  him  into  his  tent. 

The  surgeons  examined  the  wound,  pronounced  it 
in  great  danger  of  mortification,  and  said  the  leg  must 
be  immediately  taken  off;  which  caused  great  grief 
and  distress  to  the  army.     But  one  of  the  surgeons 


PETER  THE   GREAT.  139 

who  had  more  skill  and  courage  than  the  rest,  said 
that  by  cutting  deeply  he  could  save  the  King's  leg. 

"  Fall  to  work  then  at  once,"  said  Charles ;  "  cut 
boldly,  and  fear  nothing."  He  himself  held  the  leg 
with  both  hands,  and  watched  the  whple  operation 
with  as  much  coolness  as  if  it  had  been  made  upon 
another  person.  While  still  confined  to  his  bed,  he 
heard  that  Peter  was  preparing  to  give  him  battle ; 
and  not  thinking  it  consistent  with  his  honor  to  re- 
main to  be  attacked  in  his  intrenchments,  he  gave  or- 
ders to  go  out  and  meet  the  enemy,  he  himself  being 
carried  in  a  litter,  at  the  head  of  the  foot  soldiers. 

The  Swedes  began  the  battle,  which  soon  became 
general,  and  the  armies  on  both  sides  fought  as  if 
they  knew  the  fate  of  the  nations  to  which  they  be- 
longed depended  on  that  day's  work.  Every  where 
Peter  and  Charles  were  in  the  thickest  of  the  fight, 
and  exposing  themselves  to  the  very  hottest  of  the 
fire.  It  seemed  as  if  both  sovereigns  bore  charmed 
lives. 

Charles,  with  a  pistol  in  his  hand,  was  carried  in 
his  litter  from  rank  to  rank ;  one  of  the  bearers  was 
shot  and  the  litter  shattered  to  pieces.  He  then  or- 
dered his  soldiers  to  make  a  litter  of  their  pikes,  and 
carry  him  on  it.  In  One  history  Voltaire  says,  that 
of  the  twenty-four  bearers  who  relieved  each  other 
in  carrying  him,  twenty-one  were  killed. 


140  THE   HISTOET   OF 

Peter  received  several  shots  through  his  clothes 
and  hat,  and  others  pierced  his  saddle,  and  Prince 
Menzikoff  had  three  horses  shot  under  him.  Without 
giving  the  details  of  this  battle,  for  I  fear  my  story 
here  is  becoming  tedious,  I  will  only  say  that  after  a 
terrible  struggle  on  both  sides,  victory  at  last  declared 
in  favor  of  the  Russians.  The  Swedes  were  taken 
on  all  sides,  and  fell  into  confusion,  and  Charles  was 
obliged  to  fly  before  him  whom  he  had  hitherto 
treated  with  such  contempt. 

This  very  hero,  who  could  not  mount  his  saddle 
during  the  fight,  now  fled  for  his  life  on  horseback. 
He  suffered  most  terrible  pain,  which  was  increased 
by  the  mortification  of  having  been  conquered  by  the 
Russians,  whom  he  had  so  despised,  and  by  distress 
at  hearing  that  many  of  his  brave  officers  had  been 
taken  prisoners  by  the  enemy. 

King  Charles  spoke  not  a  word  for  many  miles ; 
but  at  length  he  inquired  what  had  become  of  Count 
Piper  ?  "  Taken  prisoner,"  was  the  answer.  "  And 
Renschild  ?  "  he  asked.  The  answer  was  the  same, 
and  so  of  many  others  of  his  officers  and  friends. 

"  Prisoners  to  the  Russians !  "  said  Charles,  shrug- 
ging his  shoulders ;  "  come,  then,  let  us  go  to  the 
Turks  !  "  He  continued  his  flight  in  haste  with  the 
remnant  of  his  army,  till  he  reached  the  banks  of  the 
Dnieper.      The  victorious    Russians  still    pursuing 


PETER  THE   GREAT.  141 

them,  the  Swedes  crossed  the  river  in  all  haste ; 
Charles  and  Mazeppa  in  a  small  boat,  some  of  the 
army  in  barks,  or  on  floats,  and  some  by  swimming 
their  horses  across.  But  of  all  the  foot-soldiers  who 
attempted  to  cross  the  rapidly  flowing  river,  not  one 
single  man  reached  the  other  side. 

On  the  evening  of  this  famous  battle,  Peter  dined 
under  his  tent  in  company  with  his  officers,  and  in- 
vited also  the  Swedish  officers,  who  had  been  taken 
prisoners  in  the  fight,  to  the  entertainment.  In  the 
course  of  the  evening,  Peter  gave  this  toast : 

"  To  my  masters  in  the  art  of  war."  "  And 
whom,"  asked  General  Renschild,  "  is  your  majesty 
pleased  to  honor  with  such  a  title  ?  " 

"  Yourselves,  gentlemen,"  answered  the  Czar, 
"  the  brave  Swedish  generals." 

"  Then,"  asked  Renschild,  "  has  not  your  majesty 
been  somewhat  ungrateful  in  dealing  so  hard  with 
your  masters  ?  " 

Peter  was  rather  pleased  at  this  compliment,  and 
turning  to  the  General,  he  asked  him  what  number  of 
men  the  King  of  Sweden  actually  had  in  the  field. 
On  hearing  the  number,  he  said, 

"  How  is  it  possible  that  a  monarch  so  prudent  as 
the  King  of  Sweden,  could  have  thought  of  leading 
such  a  handful  of  men  into  a  country  unknown  to 
him,  and  especially  into  such  a  country  as  this  ?  " 


142  THE   HISTORY   OP 

To  this  Renschild  replied,  "  It  is  not  always  that 
I  and  my  brother  officers  are  consulted  respecting  the 
operations  of  war,  but  as  faithful  subjects  we  all  feel 
it  our  duty  not  to  oppose,  but  to  obey  our  king." 

The  Czar  was  so  delighted  with  this  reply,  that  he 
took  his  own  sword  from  his  side,  and  presenting  it 
to  Kenschild,  requested  he  would  wear  it  as  a  token 
of  esteem,  not  alone  for  his  valor,  but  also  for  his 
fidelity  to  his  sovereign. 

In  spite  of  the  admiration  of  the  Czar,  real  or 
pretended,  for  the  Swedish  officers,  most  of  these  his 
"  masters  in  the  art  of  war,"  with  the  lower  officers, 
and  all  the  private  men,  were  soon  sent  as  exiles  into 
the  wilds  of  Siberia.  There  had  been  no  arrange- 
ment made  before  this  battle  for  the  exchange  of  pris- 
oners. Peter  had  once  proposed  it,  but  Charles  re- 
jected the  offer  with  disdain ;  and  his  troops  were  in 
every  thing  the  victims  of  his  pride  and  obstinacy. 


PETEB  THE  GREAT.  143 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

Changes  effected  by  the  battle  of  Pultowa— Charles  Twelfth  at  Bender— 
His  application  to  the  Sultan— The  -Turks  determine  on  war— Catha- 
rine declared  Empress— Her  influence  over  the  Czar— The  toilsome 
march  towards  the  Pruth. 

The  effects  of  this  battle  of  Pultowa  were  felt  all 
over  Europe,  and  changed  the  condition  of  things  in 
many  a  kingdom.  "We  soon  find  Stanislaus  abdicating 
the  throne  of  Poland,  and  Augustus  restored  to  his 
dominions  by  Peter,  and  all  Poland  acknowledging 
the  Czar  as  its  protector.  Sweden  was  in  a  state  of 
consternation  and  distress,  supposing  her  king  to  be 
dead ;  and  now  Peter  laid  siege  to  Riga,  and  con- 
quered and  brought  under  his  power  again  those 
countries  upon  the  Baltic,  which  had  once  belonged 
to  Russia. 

He  then  turned  to  St.  Petersburg,  to  inspect  the 
progress  of  his  new  and  favorite  city ;  laid  with  his 
own  hands  the  keel  of  a  large  ship  of  war,  and  then 
hastened  to  Moscow,  where  he  found  the  inhabitants 


144  THE   HISTORY   OP 

in  a  great  state  of  excitement,  preparing  for  one  of 
those  splendid  triumphal  processions,  of  which  they 
were  so  fond,  and  by  which  they  meant  to  express 
their  sense  of  the  great  and  important  services  ren- 
dered by  the  Czar  to  his  country. 

In  his  flight  towards  Turkey,  Charles  Twelfth  and 
the  small  remnant  of  his  troops  reached  the  town  of 
Bender,  on  the  river  Dniester,  which  was  then  the 
boundary  of  Turkey.  Here  he  was  advised  to  write 
to  the  Grand  Vizier,  as  is  the  custom  among  the 
Turks ;  but,  obstinate  as  usual,  he  refused,  saying  it 
would  be  demeaning  himself  too  much ;  and  in  this 
way  he  made  enemies  of  the  Turkish  ministers,  one 
after  the  other.  "  In  short,"  says  Voltaire,  "he 
knew  not  how  to  accommodate  himself,  either  to  times 
or  circumstances." 

Now  that  fortune  had  turned  against  King  Charles 
in  one  part  of  the  world,  it  seemed  to  abandon  him 
every  where.  A  terrible  distemper  which  had  ap- 
peared in  Livonia  now  passed  into  Sweden,  and  made 
fearful  havoc  among  the  people,  thinning  the  popula- 
tion of  the  towns,  and  in  Stockholm  alone  carrying 
off  thirty  thousand  persons. 

Part  of  the  army  of  King  Charles  had  remained 
behind  in  Poland.  The  Czar  and  many  of  the  sur- 
rounding kings  and  dukes  joined  together  to  make 
this  army  useless  to  Charles,  by  compelling  the  gen- 


PETER   THE   GREAT.  145 

eral  who  commanded,  to  declare  himself  neutral. 
Those  who  governed  affairs  in  Stockholm,  in  the  ab- 
sence of  the  king,  hearing  no  news  of  him,  and  sup- 
posing him  to  be  dead,  and  distracted  with  the  mor- 
tality that  was  sweeping  off  the  inhabitants  of  the 
city,  were  glad  to  agree  to  this  arrangement,  by  which 
it  was  solemnly  promised  that  the  Swedish  army 
should  not  march  to  the  assistance  of  their  monarch, 
in  any  part  of  the  world. 

When  Charles,  who  was  all  this  time  at  Bender, 
heard  this  news,  he  received  it  as 'one  of  the  severest 
blows  that  had  yet  befallen  him.  He  could  not  bear 
that  his  army  should  be  so  tied  up  and  governed  by 
others,  and  sent  word  to  his  senate  at  Stockholm, 
that  "  he  would  send  one  of  his  boots  to  govern 
them." 

Charles  now  sent  an  ambassador  to  the  Yizier  at 
Constantinople,  begging  him  to  prevail  upon  his  mas- 
ter, Achmet  III.,  who  was  at  that  time  Emperor 
of  the  Turks,  to  commence  hostilities  against  the 
Russians,  assuring  him  that  the  next  movement  of  the 
Czar  would  be  to  invade  the  empire  of  Turkey.  This 
ambassador  returned,  telling  Charles  that  "  he  had 
succeeded  so  well  in  his  mission  that  the  Vizier  had 
promised  him  that  he  would  take  Charles  in  one  hand 
and  his  sword  in  the  other,  and  conduct  him  to  Mos- 
cow at  the  head  of  two  hundred  thousand  men." 
7 


146  THE   HISTOEY   OF 

However  much  this  ridiculous  boast  might  have 
pleased  the  King  of  Sweden,  his  joy  was  soon  damped 
by  hearing  that  the  envoy  of  the  Czar  was  in  high  fa- 
vor at  the  Court  of  Turkey,  and  that  he  had  de- 
manded, and  was  all  but  promised  that  the  traitor 
Mazeppa  should  be  delivered  up  to  the  Czar,  as  the 
unfortunate  General  Patkul  had  been  to  Charles. 
The  old  Hetman  of  the  Cossacks  however  escaped  this 
fate  by  taking  a  disease  of  which  he  died,  before  the 
Czar  succeeded  in  getting  him  into  his  power. 

But  though  diaries  failed  in  his  object  through 
the  Vizier  of  Constantinople,  he  succeeded  at  length 
by  means  of  the  Khan  of  Crim  Tartary,  or  the  Cri- 
mea as  it  is  now  called.  This  Khan  had  beheld  with 
great  jealousy  the  growing  power  of  the  Czar  in  the 
Black  Sea,  and  was  exceedingly  anxious  to  get  rid  of 
so  formidable  a  neighbor. 

He  went  therefore  to  visit  Charles  Twelfth  at  Ben- 
der, and  together  they  drew  up  such  a  statement  of 
complaints  against  the  Czar,  as  thoroughly  to  arouse 
the  jealousy  of  the  Sultan.  The  Khan  then  went  to 
Constantinople,  and  was  admitted  to  the  presence  of 
the  Sultan,  to  whom  he  confirmed  all  that  was  said  in 
this  statement,  adding  that  the  Russians  were  com- 
mitting all  sorts  of  ravages  on  the  frontiers  of  the 
Turkish  provinces,  murdering  innocent  believers,  and 
plundering  them  of  their  property. 


PETER  THE   GEEAT.  147 

He  concluded  by  begging  that  the  great  Council 
should  at  once  be  called  together,  to  decide  what 
should  be  done  in  view  of  the  dangers  which  now 
threatened  the  Turkish  empire.  The  Council  met 
and  decided  that  there  was  nothing  to  be  done  but  to 
go  to  war  immediately. 

Without  any  warning  of  this  determination,  the 
ambassador  of  the  Czar  was  at  once  arrested  in  the 
streets  of  Constantinople,  and  with  thirty  of  his  ser- 
vants was  thrown  into  the  castle  of  the  Seven  Towers. 

"  Never,"  says  Voltaire,  "  was  sovereign  more  in- 
sulted in  the  person  of  his  ministers,  than  the  Czar 
of  Russia.  Within  the  space  of  a  few  years,  his 
ambassador  at  the  Court  of  London  was  imprisoned 
for  debt;  his  minister  and  general  in  Poland  was 
broken  on  the  wheel,  by  order  of  the  King  of  Swe- 
den, and  his  envoy  to  the  Turkish  Emperor  was 
seized  and  imprisoned  at  Constantinople,  like  a  com- 
mon criminal." 

And  now  that  war  was  declared,  the  troops  of  the 
Czar  gathered  from  all  quarters  of  the  great  empire 
of  Russia,  and  took  their  march  toward  Turkey. 

On  the  very  day  on  which  he  set  out  upon  the  ex- 
pedition, the  Czar  caused  it  to  be  publicly  declared 
that  Catharine,  the  captive  of  Marienburg  (for  in  her 
baptism  her  name  was  changed),  whom  he  had  before 


148  THE   HISTORY   OF 

privately  married,  was  the  true  and  lawful  wife  of 
Peter  the  First,  and  Empress  of  Russia. 

Catharine  went  with  the  Czar  to  the  war  in  Tur- 
key, accompanied  him  in  all  his  excursions,  and  most 
fatiguing  campaigns,  shared  in  all  his  toils  and  dan- 
gers, and  by  her  gentle  and  lovely  manners,  and  her 
devoted  attentions,  made  herself  so  necessary  to  her 
husband,  that  he  was  never  so  happy  as  when  she  was 
near  him. 

Indeed,  her  presence  is  said  to  have  wrought  like 
a  charm  when  he  was  suffering  from  the  spasmodic 
affection,  to  which  he  had  been  subject  from  a  child. 
Wherever  she  was,  she  was  immediately  sent  for,  and 
the  moment  she  spoke  to  him,  his  muscles  relaxed,  his 
mind  became  tranquil,  and  "  Peter  was  himself 
again." 

Like  the  effect  of  the  tones  of  David's  harp  upon 
the  monarch  of  Israel,  when  tormented  by  the  evil 
spirit  that  troubled  him,  was  the  presence  of  this  fas- 
cinating woman  upon  the  Czar  of  Russia,  when 
agonized  by  the  strange  malady  to  which  he  was  a 
victim. 

She  stood  in  the  same  relation  to  the  Czar  that 
the  kind-hearted  Josephine  did  to  Napoleon.  Both 
possessed  the  art  of  soothing  the  passion,  and  of  sof- 
tening the  anger  to  which  their  husbands  were  liable. 
Both    ascended   an    imperial   throne,   but   here   the 


PETER   THE   GREAT.  149 

parallel  ends.  One  was  most  undeservedly  cast 
aside  ;  the  other  maintained  her  high  station,  and  after 
her  husband's  death,  succeeded  him,  as  Empress  of 
all  the  Russias. 

General  Gordon  says :  "  She  was  a  very  pretty, 
well-lookt  woman,  of  good  sense,  but  not  of  that 
sublimity  of  wit,  or  rather,  that  quickness  of  imagi- 
nation, which  some  people  have  believed.  The  great 
reason  why  the  Czar  was  so  fond  of  her,  was  her 
exceeding  good  temper ;  she  never  was  seen  peevish, 
or  out  of  humor,  was  obliging  and  civil  to  all,  and 
never  forgetful  of  her  former  condition,  and,  withal, 
mighty  grateful."  Many  a  wretch  escaped  the  effects 
of  the  Czar's  wrath  by  her  interposition.  "  Catha- 
rine," says  Voltaire,  "  saved  more  backs  from  the 
knout,  and  more  heads  from  the  block,  than  General 
Le  Fort  had  ever  done."  Great,  indeed,  must  have 
been  the  merit  of  this  woman,  who,  having  risen  to 
the  most  elevated  station,  from  an  obscure,  and 
almost  unknown  origin,  maintained  her  lofty  position 
without  incurring  the  envy,  hatred,  or  even  jealousy, 
of  those  over  whom  it  was  her  destiny  to  rule. 

"  Catharine,"  says  Coxe,  who  cites  from  compe- 
tent authorities,  "maintained  the  pomp  of  majesty, 
united  with  an  air  of  ease  and  grandeur  ;  and  Peter 
frequently  expressed  his  admiration  at  the  propriety 
with  which  she  supported  her  high  station,  without 


150  THE   HISTOEY   OF 

forgetting  that  she  was  not  born  to  that  dignity.  She 
bore  her  elevation  meekly,  and  was  never,  as  Gordon 
asserts,  forgetful  of  her  former  condition.  When 
"Wurmb,  who  had  been  tutor  to  Gluck's  children,  at 
the  time  that  Catharine  was  a  domestic  in  the  same 
family,  presented  himself  before  her,  after  the  public 
solemnization  of  her  marriage  .with  Peter,  she  said, 
'  What !  thou  good  man,  art  thou  still  alive  ?  I  will 
provide  for  thee ;  '  and  gave  him  a  pension.  She 
was  no  less  attentive  to  the  family  of  her  benefactor, 
Gluck,  who  died  a  prisoner  at  Moscow  :  she  pensioned 
his  widow,  made  his  son  a  page,  portioned  the  two 
eldest  daughters,  and  appointed  the  youngest  a  maid 
of  honor." 

A  part  of  the  Russian  army,  under  General  Scher- 
ematof,  were  now  on  the  banks  of  the  river  Pruth, 
and  in  danger  of  being  surrounded  by  an  army  of 
Turks  and  Tartars.  The  Czar  determined  to  hasten 
to  their  relief,  and,  if  possible,  to  prevent  the  Turks 
from  crossing  that  river  to  meet  him.  Large  bodies 
of  troops  under  different  generals  were  expected  to 
meet  him  here,  but  to  his  disappointment  none  of 
them  arrived ;  and  he  found  himself  on  the  banks  of 
the  Pruth  with  an  army  of  less  than  forty  thousand 
men. 

Before  Peter  passed  the  Dnieper,  foreseeing  the 
dangers  and  toils  of  the  march  before  them,  and  fear- 


PETER   THE   GREAT.  151 

ing  they  would  be  too  great  for  Catharine  to  endure, 
he  gave  a  general  order  for  all  the  women  who  attended 
the  army  to  be  sent  away.  Catharine,  however,  was 
not  thus  to  be  disposed  of.  She  insisted  upon  accom- 
panying his  majesty,  and  knew  well  that  she  would 
not  be  refused. 

She  urged  her  husband  in  such  strong  terms  to 
allow  her  to  accompany  him,  that  he  found  it  impossi- 
ble to  refuse.  The  soldiers  with  great  delight  beheld 
her  on  horseback  at  the  head  of  the  army,  for  she 
seldom  rode  in  a  carriage.  Her  presence  gave  en- 
couragement and  joy  to  the  troops ;  she  was  always 
ready  to  send  refreshments  and  assistance  to  the  sick, 
and  extended  her  care  even  to  the  meanest  soldier. 

After  they  passed  the  Dnieper,  there  was  a  large 
tract  of  desert  country  to  pass  through,  then  to  cross 
the  Bog,  and  afterwards  the  Dniester,  and  then  another 
desert  to  traverse,  before  they  came  to  the  banks  of 
the  Pruth.  Through  all  this  terrible  and  fatiguing 
march,  Catharine  kept  up  untiring  cheerfulness  and 
courage,  and  animated  the  whole  army  by  her  example 
of  patient  endurance. 

The  presence  of  this  noble  woman  proved  the 
salvation  of  Peter,  his  army,  and  perhaps  of  Russia, 
all  of  which  were  placed  in  great  danger  by  the  hasty 
and  imprudent  movements  of  the  Czar.  The  army  at 
length  came  in  sight  of  the  town  of  Jassi,  on  the 


152  THE   HISTOEY   OF 

banks  of  the  Pruth.  Here  Peter  met  with  many 
disappointments ;  troops  and  supplies  which  were 
promised  him ,  failed  ;  he  was  too  far  from  Poland  to 
receive  any  aid  from  that  country,  and  was  in  a  wild 
and  barren  region,  destitute  of  provisions  and  forage. 

In  this  situation,  Peter  did  not  hesitate  to  say 
that  he  found  himself  in  much  the  same  condition 
with  his  "  brother  Charles,"  when  invited  into  the 
Ukraine  by  Mazeppa.  To  add  to  their  misfortunes, 
great  swarms  of  locusts  appeared,  which  obscured  the 
face  of  the  sun  when  in  flight,  and  covered  the  ground 
when  at  rest.  These  ate  up  every  blade  of  grass, 
and  every  green  herb. 

The  army  suffered  much  for  water  in  their  march 
through  sandy  deserts,  under  a  scorching  sun;  and 
what  little  they  did  procure,  was  brought  in  vessels 
to  the  camp  from  a  great  distance.  During  all  these 
sufferings  and  privations,  Peter  had  the  satisfaction  to 
find  that  not  a  man  deserted,  and  no  murmur  escaped 
from  his  army. 

The  Russian  soldier  has  always  sustained  the 
character  which  was  formed  under  Peter.  "  He  will 
not,"  says  a  writer,  who  knew  them  well,  "  fall  back  one 
step  while  his  commander  bravely  keeps  his  ground ; 
he  contents  himself  with  extremely  little  pay,  and  with 
very  slender  diet,  and  is  always  cheerful ;  hungry  and 
thirsty,  he  traverses  the  heavy  sands  of  the  deserts, 


PETER   THE   GREAT.  153 

under  the  load  of  his  accoutrements;  without  mur- 
muring or  complaints,  executes  every  command; 
deems  nothing  impossible  or  too  difficult ;  does  every 
thing  that  he  is  ordered,  without  shunning  any  danger ; 
and  is  inventive  of  a  thousand  means  for  accomplish- 
ing his  design." 

With  men  like  these,  the  Czar  was  about  to  en- 
counter a  force  vastly  superior  to  his  own  in  point  of 
numbers.  The  enemy  was  close  at  hand,  for  the 
Grand  Vizier,  having  heard  that  the  Russian  army 
had  arrived  on  the  banks  of  the  Pruth,  immediately 
put  his  troops  in  march,  and  crossed  the  Danube  at 
the  head  of  two  hundred  thousand  men  to  meet  him 


154  THE  HISTORY   OF 


CHAPTER  XV. 

The  Grand  Vizier's  invitation  to  Charles,  and  his  answer — Battle  of  the 
Pruth — The  Czar  in  convulsions— Catharine's  mediation— A  treaty  of 
peace,  and  its  conditions— Contemptible  offer  of  Charles— His  insult 
to  the  Grand  Vizier— The  Czar  goes  to  Carlsbad— The  Prince  Alexis. 

In  marching  along  the  Pruth,  as  he  came  near  to 
Bender,  the  Grand  Vizier  dispatched  an  ambassador 
to  Charles  Twelfth,  to  invite  him  to  visit  him, 
and  inspect  his  army.  Charles,  however,  would  not 
condescend  so  far,  but  insisted  that  the  Grand  Vizier 
should  pay  him  the  compliment  of  calling  upon  him 
first. 

When  the  ambassador  returned  with  this  answer 
of  the  King  of  Sweden,  the  Grand  Vizier,  turning  to 
the  Khan  of  the  Turks,  said,  "  This  is  just  what  I 
expected ;  that  the  proud  infidel  would  behave  in  this 
manner." 

When  the  Turkish  army  reached  the  opposite  side 
of  the  river  Pruth,  Peter  dispatched  a  body  of  troops 
to  oppose  their  passage,  but  they  were  too  late  ;  the 


PETER   THE   GEEAT.  155 

Turks  had  already  constructed  bridges,  and  were 
crossing  the  river ;  upon  seeing  which,  the  Russians 
were  obliged  to  retreat,  closely  pursued  by  the  Turks, 
till  the  Czar  came  in  person  to  their  assistance. 

The  Russian  army  were  now  in  great  suffering, 
from  the  want  of  provisions  and  water ;  for  though  the 
river  was  near,  they  were  exposed  to  such  a  constant 
fire  from  the  Turks  on  the  other  side,  that  no  water 
could  be  procured.  Peter  now  thought  it  best  to 
retreat,  under  cover  of  the  night,  but  the  army  had 
no  sooner  begun  its  march,  than  the  Turks  pursued 
them. 

The  Russians  turned,  and  defended  themselves 
bravely,  killing  a  great  number  of  their  enemies,  and 
at  last  drove  them  back.  But  every  thing  was  against 
them :  the  Turkish  army  was  many  times  larger  than 
that  of  the  Russians,  and  the  latter  were  perishing 
with  hunger  and  thirst. 

In  this  desperate  condition  of  his  affairs,  all  the 
accounts  and  memoirs  of  those  times  agree  that  the 
Czar  paused  and  questioned  within  himself,  whether 
or  not  he  should  go  on,  and  expose  his  wife,  his  army 
and  his  country,  to  certain  destruction.  He  returned 
to  his  tent,  oppressed  with  anxiety,  and  immediately 
fell  into  one  of  those  terrible  convulsions  to  which 
he  was  subject,  and  which  were  often  brought  on  by 
great  excitement  of  mind. 


156  THE   HISTORY   OF 

Unwilling  that  his  grief  and  distress  should  be 
made  public,  he  gave  orders  that  no  person  should  be 
admitted  to  his  tent.  But  Catharine,  hearing  of  his 
suffering  condition,  forced  her  way  into,  his  presence, 
and  now  Peter  found  how  happy  it  was  for  him  that 
he  had  suffered  his  wife  to  accompany  him  upon  this 
expedition. 

A  wife  like  Catharine,  who  had  faced  death  in  its 
most  horrible  shapes,  and  had  exposed  herself  like  the 
meanest  of  the  soldiers  to  the  fire  of  the  Turkish  artil- 
lery, had  an  undoubted  right  to  speak  to  her  husband, 
and  to  be  heard.  The  Czar,  soothed  by  the  magic  of 
her  presence,  listened  to  what  she  had  to  say,  and  at 
last  suffered  her  to  persuade  him  to  try  and  send  to 
the  Vizier  with  proposals  of  peace. 

It  had  always  been  the  custom  in  the  East,  that 
when  any  people  applied  for  an  audience  of  the  sove- 
reign, or  his  representative,  they  must  not  presume 
to  approach  them  without  a  present.  Catharine,  there- 
fore, on  this  occasion,  mustered  the  few  jewels  and 
trinkets  she  had  brought  with  her,  and  went  round 
the  camp,  collecting  all  the  plate  and  jewels  that  could 
be  found  ;  for  which  she  gave  her  own  receipt,  and  a 
promise  to  pay  the  owners  on  her  return  to  Moscow. 

To  these  she  added  two  black  foxes'  skins,  and 
what  money  she  could  collect,  which  she  sent  by  an 
officer  with  a  letter  from  Marshal  Scherematof  to  the 


td-^S^kM 


CATHERINE    SOOTHING    THE    CZAR    WHILE    IN    CONVULSIONS. 


PETER   THE   GREAT.  157 

Grand  Vizier ;  and  after  considerable  delay  in  making 
the  necessary  arrangements,  a  treaty  of  peace  was 
concluded. 

The  Czar  alludes  to  this  in  his  journals ;  and  also 
in  1723,  when  he  caused  the  Empress  Catharine  to 
be  crowned,  he  gave  this  public  testimony  to  her  use- 
fulness to  him  at  that  time  :  "  She  has  been,"  he  said, 
u  of  great  assistance  to  us  in  all  times  of  danger,  but 
particularly  at  the  battle  of  the  Pruth,  where  our 
army  was  reduced  to  twenty- two  thousand  men." 

Some  hours  elapsed  before  the  messenger  sent  to 
the  Grand  Vizier  returned ;  and  it  was  feared  that  he 
nad  either  been  killed  or  detained  as  a  prisoner  by  the 
Turks. 

A  second  messenger  therefore  was  sent,  with  copies 
of  the  former  letters ;  and  a  council  of  war  was  held, 
at  which  Catharine  was  present.  At  this  council  the 
following  resolution  was  signed  by  ten  general  offi- 
cers : — 

"  Besolved,  If  the  enemy  will  not  accept  the  con- 
ditions proposed,  and  should  insist  upon  our  laying 
down  our  arms  and  surrendering  at  discretion,  that 
all  the  ministers  and  general  officers  are  unanimously 
of  opinion  to  cut  their  way  through  the  enemy,  sword 
in  hand." 

After  waiting,  as  they  supposed,  a  sufficient  length 
of  time,  the  Russians  left  the  camp,  and  marched 


158  m      THE   HISTORY    OF 

towards  the  enemy,  when  the  Vizier  proclaimed  a 
suspension  of  arms  between  the  two  contending  ar- 
mies. 

The  terms  proposed  by  the  Grand  Vizier  were 
that  the  Czar  should  return  with  his  troops  to  his 
own  country ;  should  restore  Azoph ;  give  up  his 
harbors  and  possessions  on  the  Black  Sea,  and  the 
Sea  of  Azoph  ;  that  for  the  future  he  should  no  more 
interfere  in  the  affairs  of  the  Poles  and  Tartars,  and 
that  Charles  Twelfth  should  be  allowed  to  return  un- 
molested to  his  own  dominions. 

As  soon  as  this  treaty  was  concluded,  Charles 
Twelfth,  forgetting  in  his  haste  his  great  dignity,  went 
to  see  the  Grand  Vizier,  who  remembering  the  haugh- 
tiness of  the  King  of  Sweden  at  Bender,  would  not 
go  himself  to  meet  him,  but  sent  two  pashas  to  con- 
duct him  to  his  tent,  where  he  received  him.  Charles 
began  the  conversation,  by  reproaching  the  Vizier  for 
not  taking  the  Czar  prisoner,  when  he  had  him  in  his 
power. 

But  the  Vizier  coolly  asked,  "  Had  I  taken  the 
Czar  prisoner,  who  would  have  governed  his  empire  ?  " 
adding,  "  All  kings  should  not  leave  their  own  do- 
minions." 

Bruce  adds  that  Charles  then  proposed  to  the 
Vizier  to  give  him  twenty  thousand  of  his  troops,  and 


PETER  THE   GREAT.  159 

he  would  yet  seize  upon  the  person  of  the  Czar,  and 
bring  him  a  prisoner  to  Constantinople. 

"  God  preserve  us,"  said  the  Yizier,  "  from  break- 
ing a  treaty  of  peace  without  any  more  reason,  as  I 
have  already  received  hostages  for  the  performance 
of  it." 

Being  still  urged  to  agree  to  the  proposal  of 
Charles,  the  Vizier  said  that  it  would  be  a  violation 
of  that  part  of  the  treaty  which  provides  "  that  the 
King  of  Sweden  may  return  into  his  own  dominions, 
through  the  Czar's  territories,  with  a  strong  envoy  of 
Turks,  after  which,  if  he  pleases,  he  may  make  peace 
with  the  Czar." 

King  Charles,  on  hearing  this,  looked  fall  at  the 
Grand  Vizier,  and  laughed  in  his  face,  without  mak- 
ing any  answer,  and  then  turning  short  on  his  heel, 
he  purposely  tore  the  Vizier's  robe  with  his  spur, 
mounted  his  horse,  and  rode  off  in  great  anger. 

"Charles,"  says  Voltaire,  "  gained  nothing  by  his 
journey,  but  the  pleasure  of  tearing  the  Vizier's  robe 
with  his  spurs ;  while  this  officer,  who  was  in  condi- 
tion to  make  him  repent  the  insult,  seemed  not  to  no- 
tice it,  in  which  he  was  certainly  greatly  superior  to 
King  Charles." 

Bruce,  who  was  sent  express  to  Constantinople, 
relates  the  following  melancholy  story :  "  At  our  set- 
ting out  (from  the  Pruth)  Colonel  Pitt  had  the  mis- 


160  THE   HISTORY   OF 

fortune  to  lose  both  his  wife  and  daughter,  beautiful 
women,  by  the  breaking  of  their  coach  wheel;  by 
this  accident  they  were  left  so  far  in  the  rear  that  the 
Tartars  seized  and  carried  them  off.  The  Colonel 
addressed  himself  to  the  Grand  Vizier,  who  ordered 
a  strict  inquiry  to  be  made,  but  to  no  purpose.  The 
Colonel,  being  afterwards  informed  that  they  were 
both  carried  to  Constantinople,  and  presented  to  the 
Grand  Seignior,  obtained  a  pass,  and  went  thither  in 
search  of  them ;  and  getting  acquainted  with  a  Jew 
doctor,  who  was  physician  to  the  seraglio,  the  doc- 
tor told  him  there  had  been  two  such  ladies  as  he 
described  lately  presented  to  the  Sultan ;  but  that 
when  any  of  the  sex  were  once  taken  into  the  seraglio, 
they  were  never  suffered  to  come  out  again.  The 
colonel,  nevertheless,  tried  every  expedient  he  could 
devise  to  recover  his  wife,  if  he  could  not  get  both, 
till  becoming  outrageous  by  repeated  disappointment, 
and  very  clamorous,  they  shut  him  up  in  a  dungeon  ; 
and  it  was  with  great  difficulty  he  got  released,  by  the 
intercession  of  some  of  the  foreign  ambassadors  at 
the  Porte ;  and  he  was  afterwards  told,  by  the  Jew 
doctor,  that  his  wife  and  daughter  had  both  died  of 
the  plague." 

There  were  great  rejoicings  in  Constantinople, 
when  the  news  of  this  treaty  reached  that  city;  and 
the  Russian  ambassador  who  had  been  a  prisoner  in 


PETER   THE    GEEAT.  161 

the  Castle  of  the  Seven  Towers,  was  immediately  re- 
leased. Peter  at  once  began  his  march  back  to  Rus- 
sia, and  sent  to  have  his  fortresses  on  the  Black  Sea, 
and  the  Sea  of  Azoph  demolished. 

This  was  a  hard  thing  for  Peter  to  do,  as  one  of 
his  favorite  plans  was  that  of  possessing  a  fleet  upon 
those  seas,  and  thus  of  having  a  communication  with 
other  countries  through  these  waters,  as  well  as  by 
means  of  the  Baltic. 

On  his  return  from  this  campaign,  the  Czar  found 
his  health  so  much  injured  that  it  became  necessary 
for  him  to  go  to  Carlsbad,  (a  town  in  Bohemia,  famous 
for  its  mineral  springs,)  to  drink  the  waters.  From 
thence  he  went  to  Dresden,  where  his  son  Alexis,  who 
was  at  that  time  in  his  twenty-second  year,  was  wait- 
ing his  arrival. 

This  young  prince  was  the  son  of  Peter  and  Eu- 
docia,  the  wife  from  whom  he  was  separated,  and  who 
was  still  shut  up  in  the  monastery  of  Susdal.  In 
telling  you  the  story  of  this  unfortunate  son  of  the 
Czar,  and  in  speaking  of  his  character,  and  his  miser- 
able end,  I  have  a  difficult  task  to  perform.  The  sto- 
ries that  are  told  of  the  treatment  of  the  prince  by 
his  father  are  so  varied,  and  the  views  taken  of  the 
conduct  of  the  Czar  in  this  matter  so  very  different, 
that  I  have  hardly  been  able  to  determine  whose  tes- 
timony to  take,  or  whose  account  to  give. 


162  THE   HISTORY   OF 

By  some  the  Czar  is  called  harsh  and  cruel,  a 
poisoner  and  a  murderer ;  by  others  he  is  held  up  as 
a  model  sovereign  and  father,  exercising  the  Roman 
virtue  of  sacrificing  his  own  feelings  as  a  parent,  to 
the  good  of  his  empire.  I  shall  tell  you  the  story  as 
it  is  told  by  many  authors,  historians,  and  letter-wri- 
ters of  the  time  of  Peter  the  Great ;  and  if  I  err  in 
favoring  the  Czar  too  much,  the  "hundred  years 
hence  "  has  come  when  it  is  "  all  the  same  "  to  him, 
and  to  the  people  of  his  time. 


PETER   THE   GREAT.  163 


CHAPTER  XVI. 


The  marriage  of  Alexis — His  character — Celebration  of  the  Czar's  old 
■wedding— Romantic  story  of  the  brother  of  Catharine— The  war  car- 
ried into  Sweden — Triumphal  procession— Promotion  of  Eear  Admi- 
ral Peter. 


After  the  Czar  joined  his  son  Alexis,  they  proceeded 
together  to  Targow,  to  the  marriage  of  the  latter  to 
the  sister  of  the  Empress  of  Germany.  The  bride 
of  Alexis  was  an  amiable  and  accomplished  young 
lady  of  eighteen  years  of  age,  and  the  Czar  hoped  by 
marrying  his  son  to  one  so  lovely  and  interesting,  to 
draw  him  from  his  wicked  courses,  and  to  influence 
him  to  lead  a  better  life,  and  one  that  became  the  suc- 
cessor to  the  throne  of  Russia. 

For  the  young  prince  is  represented  by  many 
writers  of  his  time  as  being  a  disobedient  son,  and  en- 
tirely given  up  to  dissipation  and  excess  of  every 
kind.  Catharine  was  not  present  at  this  marriage, 
for  as  yet  she  was  acknowledged  as  Empress  only  at 
the  Court  of  the  Czar,  and  he  feared  that  in  Germany 


164  THE   HISTOEY   OP 

she  might  not  be  received  with  the  honor  which  was 
really  her  due. 

As  soon  as  this  marriage  of  the  Prince  was  over, 
Peter  hastened  to  join  Catharine,  and  took  her  with 
him  to  St.  Petersburg,  where  on  the  26th  of  Febru- 
ary, 1712,  his  Majesty  }s  old  wedding  was  solemnized 
with  great  splendor  and  rejoicing,  and  with  fireworks 
and  illuminations. 

A  few  years  after  the  marriage  of  Catharine  with 
the  Czar,  a  circumstance  happened  which  has  much 
the  air  of  romance.  Voltaire  says  it  is  related  in  a 
curious  manuscript  of  a  person  who  was  at  that  time 
in  the  service  of  the  Czar,  and  who  speaks  of  it  as  a 
thing  to  which  he  was  an  eye-witness.  I  will  tell  the 
story  in  the  words  of  Voltaire  : — 

"  An  envoy  from  King  Augustus  to  the  Court  of 
Peter  the  Great,  being  on  his  return  home  through 
Courland,  and  having  put  up  at  an  inn  by  the  way, 
heard  the  voice  of  a  person  who  seemed  in  great  dis- 
tress, and  whom  the  people  of  the  house  were  treat- 
ing in  that  insulting  manner  which  is  but  too  common 
on  such  occasions;  the  stranger,  with  a  tone  of  re- 
sentment, made  answer  that  they  would  not  dare  to 
use  him  thus,  if  he  could  but  once  get  to  the  speech 
of  the  Czar,  at  whose  court  he  had  perhaps  a  more 
powerful  protector  than  they  imagined. 

"  The  envoy,  upon  hearing  this,  had  the  curiosity 


PETER   THE   GREAT.  165 

to  ask  the  man  some  questions,  and,  from  certain  an- 
swers he  let  fall,  and  a  close  examination  of  his  face, 
he  thought  he  found  in  him  some  resemblance  to  the 
Empress  Catharine ;  and,  when  he  came  to  Dresden, 
he  could  not  forbear  writing  to  one  of  his  friends  at 
Petersburg  concerning  it. 

"  This  letter,  by  accident,  came  to  the  Czar's  hands, 
who  immediately  sent  an  order  to  Prince  Repnin,  then 
Governor  of  Riga,  to  endeavor  to  find  out  the  person 
mentioned  in  the  letter.  Prince  Repnin  immediately 
despatched  a  messenger  to  Mittau,  in  Courland,  who, 
on  inquiry,  found  out  the  man,  and  learned  that  his 
name  was  Charles  Scavronsky ;  that  he  was  the  son 
of  a  Lithuanian  gentleman,  who  had  been  killed  in 
the  wars  of  Poland,  and  had  left  two  children  then 
in  the  cradle,  a  boy  and  a  girl,  who  had  neither  of 
them  received  any  other  education  than  that  which 
simple  nature  gives  to  those  who  are  abandoned  by 
the  world.  Scavronsky,  who  had  been  parted  from 
his  sister,  while  they  were  both  infants,  knew  nothing 
further  than  that  she  had  been  taken  prisoner  in  Ma- 
riensburg,  in  the  year  1704,  and  supposed  her  to  be 
still  in  the  household  of  Prince  Menzikoff,  where  he 
imagined  she  might  have  made  some  little  fortune. 

"  Prince  Repnin,  agreeably  to  the  particular  orders 
he  had  received  from  the  Czar,  caused  Scavronsky  to 
be  seized  and  conducted  to  Riga,  under  pretence  of 


166  THE   HISTORY   OF 

some  crime  laid  to  his  charge ;  and,  to  give  a  better 
color  to  the  matter,  at  his  arrival  there,  a  sham  in- 
formation was  drawn  up  against  him,  and  he  was  soon 
after  sent  to  Petersburg,  under  a  strong  guard,  with 
orders  to  treat  him  well  upon  the  road. 

"  When  he  came  to  that  capital,  he  was  carried  to 
the  house  of  an  officer  of  the  Emperor's  palace,  named 
Shepleff,  who,  having  been  previously  instructed  in 
the  part  he  was  to  play,  drew  several  circumstances 
from  the  young  man  in  relation  to  his  condition ;  and, 
after  some  time,  told  him.  that  although  the  informa- 
tion which  had  been  sent  up  from  Riga  against  him 
was  of  a  very  serious  nature,  yet  he  would  have  jus- 
tice done  him,  but  that  it  would  be  necessary  to  pre- 
sent a  petition  to  his  majesty  for  that  purpose ;  that 
one  should  accordingly  be  drawn  up  in  his  name,  and 
that  he  (Shepleff)  would  find  means  that  he  should 
deliver  it  into  the  Czar's  own  hands. 

"  The  next  day  the  Czar  came  to  dine  with  Shepleff 
at  his  own  house,  who  presented  Scavronsky  to  him ; 
when  his  majesty,  after  asking  him  abundance  of  ques- 
tions, was  convinced,  by  the  natural  answers  he  gave, 
that  he  was  really  the  Czarina's  brother :  they  had 
both  lived  in  Livonia,  when  young,  and  the  Czar 
found  every  thing  that  Scavronsky  said  to  him  in  re- 
lation to  his  family  affairs,  tally  exactly  with  what  his 
wife  had  told  him  concerning  her  brother,  and  the 


PETER  THE  GEEAT.  167 

misfortunes  which  had  befallen  her  and  her  brother 
in  the  earlier  part  of  their  lives. 

"  The  Czar,  now  satisfied  of  the  truth  of  the 
young  man's  story,  proposed  the  next  day  to  the 
Empress  to  go  and  dine  with  him  at  Shepleff's  ;  and 
when  dinner  was  over,  he  gave  orders  that  the  man 
whom  he  had  examined  the  day  before,  should  be 
brought  in  again. 

"  Accordingly  he  was  introduced,  dressed  in  the 
same  clothes  he  had  worn  while  on  his  journey  to  Riga, 
the  Czar  not  being  willing  that  he  should  appear  in 
any  other  garb  than  what  his  unhappy  circumstances 
had  accustomed  him  to. 

"  He  interrogated  him  again,  in  the  presence  of 
his  wife ;  and  the  MS.  adds  that,  at  the  end,  he 
turned  about  to  the  Empress  and  said  these  very 
words: — "This  man  is  your  brother;  come  hither, 
Charles,  and* kiss  the  hand  of  the  Empress,  and  em- 
brace your  sister." 

The  author  of  this  narrative  adds  further,  that 
the  Empress  fainted  away  with  surprise ;  and  that, 
when  she  came  to  herself  again,  the  Czar  said,  "  There 
is  nothing  in  this  but  what  is  very  natural.  This 
gentleman  is  my  brother-in-law ;  if  he  has  merit  we 
will  make  something  of  him ;  if  he  has  not,  we  will 
leave  him  as  he  is." 

"I  am  of  opinion,"  adds  Voltaire,  "that  this  speech 


168  THE   HISTOEY    OF 

shows  as  much  greatness  as  simplicity,  and  a  greatness 
not  very  common.  My  author  says,  that  Scavronsky  re- 
mained a  considerable  time  at  Shepleff's  house ;  that 
the  Czar  assigned  him  a  handsome  pension,  hut  that  he 
lived  a  very  retired  life.  He  carries  his  relation  of  this 
adventure  no  farther,  as  he  made  use  of  it  only  to  dis- 
close the  secret  of  Catharine's  brother ;  but  we  know, 
from  other  authorities,  that  this  gentleman  was  after- 
wards created  a  count ;  that  he  married  a  young  lady 
of  quality,  by  whom  he  had  two  daughters,  who  were 
married  to  two  of  the  principal  noblemen  of  Russia." 

The  rejoicings  made  by  the  Czar  upon  his  own 
public  marriage  and  that  of  his  son,  were  not  of  the 
nature  of  those  which  only  exhaust  the  public  treasury, 
and  are  then  forgotten  without  effecting  any  perma- 
nent good.  He  completed  the  great  works  he  had 
begun,  finished  highways,  built  ships,  dug  canals,  and 
erected  public  buildings,  and  St.  Petersburg  soon  had 
the  air  of  a  flourishing  city. 

This  city  was  now  made  the  capital  of  the  Em- 
pire ;  and  he  employed  a  great  number  of  Swedish 
prisoners  in  beautifying  the  place,  whose  foundations 
had  been  laid  upon  their  own  defeat. 

Peter  being  bent  on  still  further  humbling  Sweden, 
determined  to  carry  the  war  into  that  country,  in- 
tending, if  possible,  to  take  possession  of  every  town 
which   might  in  future  times  be   dangerous  to   St. 


PETER  THE   GREAT.  169 

Petersburg.  In  the  mean  time  Charles  Twelfth, 
against  whom  Russia,  Poland,  Denmark,  Prussia,  and 
Germany  were  united,  remained  at  Bender,  quarelling 
with  the  Turks,  on  whose  charity  he  was  subsisting ; 
and  contenting  himself  with  sending  to  those  who 
governed  affairs  in  Sweden  during  his  absence,  to 
make  all  possible  resistance  against  these  powers, 
both  by  sea  and  land. 

The  whole  of  the  year  1713  was  spent  in  battles 
and  sieges  of  various  places  in  Pomerania,  a  country 
lying  on  the  southern  snore  of  the  Baltic  sea,  which 
then  belonged  to  Sweden,  but  now  forms  part  of 
Prussia.  Without  giving  you  the  details  of  these 
various  battles,  suffice  it  to  say,  that  the  Czar  gained 
many  victories  both  by  sea  and  land,  over  the  Swedes, 
who  had  formerly  beaten  him  every  where. 

After  gaining  a  glorious  victory  on  the  Gulf  of 
Finland,  he  returned  to  St.  Petersburg,  where  his  joy 
was  increased  by  the  news  of  the  birth  of  a  daughter, 
who,  however,  died  about  a  year  after.  He  celebrated 
this  event  by  a  triumphal  entry  into  his  3w  capital, 
and  instituted  a  new  order  in  honor  of  his  wife,  which 
he  called  the  Order  of  St.  Catharine. 

The  badge    of  this  order   is  a  medal   encircled 

with  precious  stones  surrounding  the  picture  of  St. 

Catharine,  with  the  motto  "  For  Love  and  Fidelity." 

This  was  as  a  remembrance  of  her  love  and  faithful- 

8 


170  THE   HISTORY   OP 

ness  to  him  always ;  and  especially  in  the  distressed 
situation  of  his  army  at  the  battle  of  the  Pruth. 

All  the  vessels  belonging  to  the  Russians,  together 
with  those  upon  which  they  had  seized,  came  up  the 
Neva  opposite  the  Senate-house  and  the  fort,  amid 
the  roar  of  cannon  ;  after  which  the  men  came  ashore, 
and  walked  in  grand  procession  to  the  Senate-house. 

"When  his  majesty  reached  a  triumphal  arch,  all 
the  grandees,  senators,  and  foreign  ministers,  con- 
gratulated him  on  his  victory.  The  Governor  of 
Moscow,  in  the  name  of  the  country,  complimented 
his  majesty  on  his  gallant  conduct,  and  thanked  him 
for  his  great  and  distinguished  services. 

The  procession  then  proceeded  to  the  fort,  where 
the  Vice-Czar,  (I  spare  you  his  name,)  seated  on  a 
throne,  surrounded  by  the  Senate,  caused  Rear- 
Admiral  Peter  (for  this  was  the  Czar's  naval  title) 
to  be  brought  before  him,  and  received  a  report  from 
him  in  writing  of  the  gallant  action  he  had  fought ; 
and  after  the  reading  of  this  report,  he  was  declared 
Vice-Admiral  of  Russia,  which  being  proclaimed 
in  the  assembly,  the  whole  house  resounded  with 
"  Health  to  the  Vice-Admiral."  Peter  having  re- 
turned thanks,  immediately  went  on  board,  and 
hoisted  the  flag  of  the  Vice-Admiral. 

After  this,  his  majesty,  attended  by  numbers  of 
the  nobility  and  officers,  went  to  the  palace  of  Prince 


PETER   THE   GREAT.  171 

Menzikoff,  where  a  grand  entertainment  was  pro- 
vided. When  the  dinner  was  ended,  the  Czar,  who 
had  showed  a  marked  attention  to  Y  ice-Admiral 
Ehrenschild,  a  Swedish  prisoner,  addressing  the  com- 
pany, said,  "Gentlemen,  you  here  see  a  brave  and 
faithful  servant  of  his  master,  who  has  made  himself 
worthy  of  the  highest  rewards  at  his  hands,  and  who 
shall  always  have  my  favor  while  he  is  with  me,  al- 
though he  has  killed  me  many  a  brave  man.  I  for- 
give you,"  said  he,  turning  to  the  Swede  with  a  smile, 
"  and  you  may  always  depend  on  my  good  will." 

Ehrenschild,  having  thanked  the  Czar,  replied, 
u  However  honorably  I  may  have  acted  with  regard 
to  my  master,  I  did  no  more  than  my  duty  :  I  sought 
death,  but  did  not  meet  it ;  and  it  is  no  small  com- 
fort to  me  in  my  misfortune,  to  be  a  prisoner  of  your 
majesty,  and  to  be  treated  so  favorably,  and  with  so 
much  distinction  by  so  great  a  sea-officer,  and  now, 
worthily,  Vice- Admiral." 

The  Czar,  on  this  occasion,  addressed  the  following 
speech  to  the  assembled  senators,  many  of  whom  had 
not  been  very  favorable  to  his  views  of  reform,  nor 
to  the  great  expense  occasioned  by  maintaining  a 
fleet  :— 

"  My  brethren,  where  is  the  man  among  you,  who, 
twenty  years  ago,  would  have  conceived  the  idea  of 
being  engaged  along  with  myself  in  building  ships 


1*72  THE  HISTORY   OF 

here  on  the  Baltic,  and  in  settling  in  these  regions, 
conquered  by  our  fatigues  and  bravery  ?— of  living  to 
see  so  many  brave  and  victorious  soldiers  and  seamen, 
sprung  from  Russian  blood,— and  to  see  our  sons  re- 
turning home  accomplished  men  from  foreign  coun- 
tries ?     Historians  place  the  seat  of  all  sciences  in 
Greece ;  whence  being  expelled  by  the  fatality  of  the 
times,  they  spread  into  Italy,  and  thence  were  dis- 
persed all  over  Europe;  but  by  the  perverseness  of 
our  ancestors,  they  stopped  short  in  Poland.     The 
Poles   as  well   as  the  Germans  formerly  groped  in 
the  same  darkness  in  which  we  have  hitherto  lived,— 
but  the  indefatigable  care  of  their  governors  at  length 
opened  their  eyes,  and  they  made  themselves  masters 
of  those  arts,  sciences,  and  social  improvements,  which 
Greece  once  boasted  of.     It  is  now  our  turn,  if  you 
will  only  seriously  second  my  designs,  and  add  to 
your  obedience  voluntary  knowledge.      I   can  com- 
pare this  progress  of  the  sciences  to  nothing  better 
than  the  circulation  of  the  blood  in  the  human  body ; 
and  my  mind  almost  prophesies  that  they  will  some 
time  or  other   quit  their  abode  in  Britain,  France, 
and  Germany,  to  come  and  settle  for  some  centuries 
among  us;    and  afterward,  perhaps,  return  to  their 
original  home  in  Greece.     In  the  mean  time  I  earn- 
estly recommend  to  your  practice  the  Latin  saying, 
Ora  et  labora;  and  in  that  case,  be  persuaded,  you 


PETER   THE   GREAT.  1*73 

may  chance,  even  in  your  own  lifetime,  to  put  other 
civilized  nations  to  the  blush,  and  raise  the  glory  of 
the  Russian  name  to  the  highest  pitch." 

The  senators  and  the  whole  assembly  applauded 
this  speech.  A  round  of  entertainments  were  now 
given  by  the  superior  officers  of  the  government; 
from  all  which  the  Czarovitz,  Alexis,  thought  fit  to 
absent  himself,  though  regularly  invited  by  General 
Bruce,  "  who,"  says  Captain  Bruce,  "  sent  me  several 
times  to  inform  him  of  his  majesty's  displeasure  at 
his  non-appearance;  but  the  old  excuse — want  of 
health — served  on  every  occasion." 

It  seems  that  this  wayward  young  man,  to  avoid 
appearing  in  public,  either  took  medicine  or  bled 
himself, — always  making  an  excuse  that  his  want  of 
health  would  not  allow  him  to  attend  ;  u  when,  at  the 
same  time,"  says  Bruce,  "  it  was  notoriously  known 
that  he  spent  his  time  in  very  bad  company,  where  he 
used  constantly  to  condemn  all  his  father's  actions." 

On  the  present  occasion,  by  way  of  punishment, 
the  Czar  ordered  him,  being  only  a  sergeant  of  grena- 
diers, to  take  his  place  on  the  right,  with  his  halbert 
on  his  shoulder,  wlien  a  company  of  that  regiment 
was  ordered  to  attend  one  of  these  entertainments. 
The  princess,  his  consort,  happening  to  see  him  from 
a  window  march  past,  as  she  thought  in  a  degrading 
situation,  was  taken  ill  and  fainted. 


174  THE  HISTORY   OF 

The  Czar  on  hearing  this,  immediately  went  to 
her,  explained  to  her  that  he  himself  had  gone  through 
the  lowest  ranks  of  both  land  and  sea  service,  till  he 
reached  what  he  now  was,  a  general  in  one,  and  a 
vice-  admiral  in  the  other ;  but  he  told  her,  with  his 
usual  good-nature,  that  he  had  just  procured  for  his 
son,  from  the  Vice-Czar,  an  ensign's  commission  in 
the  guards,  and  that  he  came  to  give  her  joy  on  her 
husband's  promotion. 


PETER  THE   GREAT.  175 


CHAPTER  XVII. 


The  Eoyal  prisoners  in  Turkey — Eeturn  of  Charles — Siege  of  Stralsund 
— Anecdote  of  Charles — Success  of  the  Czar — Entertainments  at  the 
Court  of  Bussia— New  travels  of  the  .Czar — High  price  of  eggs — Eecep- 
tion  at  Amsterdam. 


Two  Christian  kings  were  now  prisoners  in  Tur- 
key. Charles  the  Twelfth,  who  having  given  his 
promise  to  the  Sultan,  that  he  would  leave  his  do- 
minions, and  having  received  from  him  a  supply  of 
money  and  a  guard  for  his  journey,  took  the  mad 
resolution  to  continue  there,  and  oppose  the  whole 
army  of  Turks  and  Tartars,  with  only  his  own  do- 
mestics. 

And  Stanislaus,  the  former  king  of  Poland,  who 
having  just  arrived  in  Turkey  on  a  visit  to  King 
Charles,  at  the  very  time  he  came  to  this  resolution, 
was  also  seized  and  detained  as  a  prisoner.  Charles, 
however,  though  informed  that  many  towns  belonging 
to  him,  had  been  taken  possession  of  by  other  powers, 
and  that  he  had  lost  part  of  the  country  of  Pome- 


176  THE   HISTORY    OF 

rania,  still  had  hopes  of  returning  to  Poland  at  the 
head  of  a  Turkish  army,  replacing  Stanislaus  on  the 
throne,  and  once  again  making  his  enemies  tremble. 

Those  who  governed  affairs  in  Sweden,  having  be- 
come discouraged,  and  desperate,  determined  not  to 
consult  their  absent  king  any  longer  as  to  their  move- 
ments, but  to  send  to  the  Czar  an  officer  with  pro- 
posals of  peace.  Just  as  this  ambassador  was  setting 
out,  however,  they  heard  that  Charles  Twelfth  was 
on  his  way  home  to  fight  his  own  battles ;  and  in  fact 
the  King  of  Sweden,  after  remaining  five  years  and 
some  months  in  Turkey,  set  out  from  that  kingdom 
in  October  1714. 

Charles  supposed  that  he  could  at  once  raise  a 
sufficient  number  of  vessels  to  put  a  stop  to  the  rising 
power  of  the  Czar  on  the  sea ;  with  respect  to  the  war 
on  land,  he  had  little  fear,  thinking  it  an  easy  matter 
for  the  Swedes  to  conquer  the  Russians,  with  himself 
at  their  bead. 

But  in  the  month  of  April,  the  first  Swedish 
privateers  that  put  to  sea,  were  captured  by  the  Czar's 
men-of-war;  and  a  Russian  army  marched  into  the 
heart  of  Pomerania.  Charles  Twelfth  was  now  in 
Stralsund,  a  town  of  Pomerania,  on  the  Baltic  sea ; 
which  town  was  soon  besieged  by  Prussians,  Danes, 
and  Saxons ;  and  Charles  found  that  he  had  returned 


PETER   THE   GREAT.  Ill 

from  being  a  prisoner  in  Turkey,  only  to  be  more 
closely  pent  up  at  home. 

Towards  the  end  of  the  year,  Stralsund,  after 
having  made  a  brave  resistance,  and  being  reduced  to 
a  heap  of  ruins,  surrendered  to  the  King  of  Prussia. 
There  is  an  anecdote  told  of  Charles  during  this  siege, 
which  shows  a  peculiarity  of  his  character.  So  many 
of  his  officers  were  either  killed  or  wounded,  that 
the  duty  came  very  hard  upon  those  who  were  left. 

Baron  Reichal,  a  colonel,  having  been  long  fight- 
ing upon  the  ramparts,  and  being  completely  worn 
out  with  watching  and  fatigue,  had  thrown  himself 
upon  a  bench,  to  take  a  little  rest.  He  had  no  sooner 
laid  down,  however,  than  he  was  called  up  again  to 
mount  guard  upon  the  ramparts. 

As  the  tired  soldier  was  dragging  himself  along 
to  obey  this  order,  he  indulged  himself  in  speaking 
in  no  very  mild  or  measured  terms,  of  the  obstinacy 
of  the  king  his  master,  in  subjecting  all  those  about 
him  to  such  terrible  and  useless  fatigue ;  these  com- 
plimentary remarks  were  overheard  by  Charles,  who 
immediately  hastened  to  him,  stripped  off  his  own 
cloak  and  spread  it  on  the  ground  before  him,  saying, 
"  My  dear  Reichal,  you  are  quite  worn  out;  come,  I 
have  had  an  hour's  sleep,  which  has  quite  refreshed 
me ;  I'll  take  the  guard  for  you,  while  you  finish  your 
nap,  and  will  wake  you  when  I  think  it  is  time." 
8*' 


US  THE  HISTORY   OP 

And  so  saying,  he  wrapped  the  colonel  up  in  his 
own  cloak,  and  in  spite  of  his  resistance  he  made  him 
lie  down  and  rest,  while  he  mounted  guard  in  his 
place.  Before  the  place  was  delivered  up  to  the  Rus- 
sians, Charles,  at  the  risk  of  his  life,  escaped  in  a 
small  boat,  with  ten  persons;  his  officers  having 
forced  him  to  quit  the  place. 

When  his  friend  Duker,  who  surrendered  the 
place,  joined  him,  the  king  reproached  him  for  not 
holding  out  longer  against  the  enemy. 

"  I  had  your  majesty's  glory  too  much  at  heart," 
replied  Duker,  "  to  continue  to  defend  a  place,  which 
your  majesty  was  obliged  to  leave." 

Charles,  who  was  already  saddened  by  this  defeat, 
now  received  the  melancholy  tidings  of  the  death  of 
Count  Piper,  his  former  minister,  and  true  and  faith- 
ful friend.  This  officer  had,  as  you  remember,  been 
taken  prisoner  at  the  battle  of  Pultowa,  and  had  re- 
mained all  these  years  a  prisoner  among  the  Russians. 
He  died  in  1715,  at  the  age  of  seventy,  in  the  Cftstle 
of  Schlussebourg,  where  he  was  confined.  His  re- 
mains were  sent  to  the  King  of  Sweden  who  gave 
them  a  magnificent  burial ;  "  a  vain  and  melancholy 
return,"  says  Yoltaire,  "  to  an  old  servant  for  a  life  of 
suffering,  and  so  deplorable  an  end." 

Peter  the  Czar  of  Russia  had  now  conquered  all 
Finland,  part  of  Pomerania,  the  countries  on  the  east- 


PETER  THE   GREAT.  179 

ern  shores  of  the  Baltic,  and  the  whole  of  both  coasts 
of  the  Gulf  of  Finland.  There  was  nothing,  therefore, 
now  to-fear  from  Sweden,  and  the  Czar  turned  his  at- 
tention once  more  to  making  improvements  in  his  own 
country. 

St.  Petersburg  now  began  to  assume  the  conse- 
quence as  well  as  the  appearance  of  a  great  capital ; 
and  vast  numbers  nocked  thither  from  Moscow  and 
other  interior  towns,  seeing  that  the  seat  of  com- 
merce would  eventually  be  established  there.  The 
Czar  had  now  become  almost  universally  popular. 

Desirous  that  in  manners  as  well  as  in  dress  his 
subjects  should  imitate  other  European  nations,  he  en- 
couraged frequent  social  assemblies  :  he  even  ordered 
his  senators  and  his  generals  to  open  their  houses 
twice  a  week  for  these  assemblies,  at  which  conversa- 
tion, cards,  and  dancing  might  be  resorted  to ;  they 
were  to  commence  at  eight,  and  end  at  eleven  o'clock ; 
they  were  open  to  all  of  the  rank  of  gentlemen,  for- 
eigners as  well  as  natives,  and  equally  so  for  then- 
wives  and  daughters.  This  was  a  great  step  gained 
in  civilization ;  and  the  ladies  gladly  profited  by  the 
indulgence,  and  rapidly  improved  in  their  manners, 
conversation,  and  dress. 

The  balls  and  entertainments  of  the  Czar  had 
hitherto  always  been  given  at  Prince  Menzikoff's 
palace, — but  his  own  summer  and  winter  palace  be- 


180  THE   HISTORY   OF 

ing  finished  in  the  course  of  the  year  1715,  he  now 
entertained  his  guests  at  one  or  the  other  of  these ; 
except  on  grand  festivals,  and  extraordinary  occa- 
sions, when  the  entertainments  were  held  at  the 
senate-house. 

At  the  public  dinners,  several  tables  were  laid 
out,  appropriated  to  the  several  classes  of  persons,  as 
senators,  clergymen,  officers  of  the  army  and  navy, 
merchants,  shipbuilders,  and  others ;  the  Czarina 
and  the  ladies  at  a  separate  table,  and  generally  above 
stairs.  These  entertainments  commonly  ended  with 
hard  drinking. 

After  dinner  the  Czar  used  to  go  from  one  room 
and  table  to  another,  conversing  with  every  set  ac- 
cording to  their  different  professions  or  employments, 
more  particularly  with  the  masters  of  foreign  trading 
vessels,  making  minute  inquiries  into  the  several 
branches  of  their  traffic,  and  marking  down  in  his 
pocket-book,  as  usual,  whatever  occurred  to  him  as 
worthy  of  notice.  "  At  these  dinners,"  says  Bruce, 
"  I  have  seen  the  Dutch  skippers  treat  him  with  much 
familiarity,  calling  him  Skipper  Peter,  with  which  he 
seemed  to  be  highly  delighted." 

The  accounts  given  of  these  entertainments  of  the 
Czar,  are  so  disgusting,  that  I  cannot  give  them  to 
you  in  full,  but  will  content  myself  with  a  few  ex- 
tracts. 


PETER   THE   GREAT.  181 

"  There  are,"  says  Dr.  Birch,  "  twenty-four  cooks 
belonging  to  the  kitchen  of  the  Russian  court,  who 
are  all  Russians.  And  as  the  people  of  that  nation 
use  a  great  deal  of  onion,  garlic,  and  train-oil,  in 
dressing  their  meat,  and  employ  linseed,  and  walnut 
oil,  for  their  provisions,  the  kitchen  is  so  disagreeable 
a  place  that  no  stranger  is  able  to  bear  it. 

"  The  number  of  persons  invited  to  an  entertain- 
ment is  commonly  two  or  three  hundred,  though  there 
is  no  room  for  more  than  a  hundred  at  four  or  five 
tables.  But  as  there  is  no  place  assigned  to  any  per- 
son, and  none  of  the  Russians  are  willing  to  go  home 
without  partaking  of  the  dinner,  every  one  is  obliged 
to  seize  his  chair  and  hold  it  by  force,  if  he  would  not 
have  it  snatched  from  him. 

"  The  Czar  having  come  in,  and  chosen  a  place 
for  himself,  there  is  such  a  scuffling  and  fighting  for 
chairs,  that  nothing  more  scandalous  can  be  seen  in 
any  country.  Several  foreign  ministers  have  com- 
plained of  this  to  the  Czar,  and  refused  to  dine  any 
more  at  court." 

And  if  the  dishes  were  such  as  are  afterwards  de- 
scribed, I  should  think  they  would  be  glad  of  an  ex- 
cuse for  refusing  to  attend. 

"  But  all  the  answer  they  received,"  says  Dr. 
Birch,  "  was,  that  it  was  not  the  Czar's  business  to 
turn  master   of  ceremonies,  and  please  foreigners, 


182  THE   HISTORY   OF 

neither  did  he  intend  to  abolish  the  freedom  once  in- 
troduced. This  obliged  strangers  to  follow  the  Rus- 
sian fashion,  and  fight  like  the  rest  for  their  seats. 

"  The  company  thus  sitting  down  to  table,  with- 
out any  manner  of  grace,  they  all  sit  so  crowded  to- 
gether that  they  have  much  ado  to  lift  their  hands  to 
their  mouths.  And  if  a  stranger  sits  between  two 
Russians,  which  is  commonly  the  case,  he  is  sure  to 
lose  his  appetite,  even  though  he  had  eaten  nothing  for 
two  days  before." 

There  was  also  a  great  deal  of  hard  drinking  at 
these  feasts,  and  the  company  soon  became  so  noisy 
as  to  drown  the  din  of  trumpets,  and  other  instru- 
ments of  music,  which  were  playing  in  the  next 
room. 

But  though  this  is  not  the  worst,  it  is  enough 
to  show  the  barbarism  of  the  manners  in  the  time  of 
Peter  the  Great.  When  alone  with  the  Empress  it  is 
said  the  Czar  was  moderate  in  his  eating  and  drink- 
ing. His  table  was  frugal,  and  consisted  only  of 
plain  dishes,  and  in  the  latter  part  of  his  life,  he 
became  simple  and  regular  in  all  his  habits. 

Peace  and  prosperity  being  finally  established  in 
Russia,  Peter  determined  to  gratify  himself  with 
another  tour  through  Europe,  taking  Catharine  with 
him.     After  visiting  many  places  in  Denmark  and 


PETER  THE   GREAT.  183 

Prussia  he  came  to  Amsterdam,  where  he  was  received 
with  every  mark  of  respect  and  attention. 

At  one  time  on  his  route  he  left  Catharine  at 
some  place,  and  proceeded  alone  to  meet  the  King  of 
Prussia.  On  his  return  he  stopped  at  night  at  a 
tavern,  with  only  two  attendants  and  a  post-chaise. 
Having  eaten  some  poached  eggs  and  a  little  bread 
and  cheese,  he  retired  to  rest,  while  his  companions 
ordered  a  bottle  of  wine. 

When  they  were  about  starting  at  an  early  hour 
in  the  morning,  one  of  the  gentlemen  asked  the  land- 
lord how  much  they  were  to  pay  ? 

"  One  hundred  ducats,"  answered  the  landlord. 

"  What  ?  "  cried  the  astonished  Russian. 

"One  hundred  ducats,"  repeated  the  host ;  "for 
my  part  I  should  be  glad  to  give  a  thousand,  if  I 
were  the  Czar  of  Russia." 

Peter  turning  round,  asked  the  man  "  if  eggs  were 
so  very  scarce  in  that  place  ?  " 

"  No,"  answered  the  host,  "  but  Emperors  are." 

At  Amsterdam  he  was  met  by  the  Earl  of  Albe- 
marle, and  three  of  the  Burgomasters  ;  and  the  earl 
addressed  him  in  a  pompous,  flowery  speech,  in  the 
Dutch  language.  Peter,  who,  as  you  know,  had  a 
great  dislike  to  all  ceremony,  replied : — 

"  I  thank  you  heartily,  though  I  don't  understand 
much  of  what  you  say.     I  learned  my  Dutch  among 


184  THE   HISTORY    OF 

shipbuilders;  but  the  sort  of  language  you  have 
spoken  I  am  sure  I  never  learned." 

Being  invited  to  dine  with  some  merchants  and 
shipbuilders,  they  addressed  him  as  "  Your  Majesty ;  " 
and  in  their  conversation  paid  him  other  marks  of  re- 
spect. 

But  Peter  cut  short  their  discourse,  saying : — 

"  Come,  brothers,  let  us  converse  like  plain,  hon- 
est ship  carpenters." 

A  servant  was  pouring  out  a  glass  of  beer  for 
him. 

"  Give  me  the  can,"  satd  Peter,  laughing ;  "  I  can 
then  drink  as  much  as  I  please,  and  nobody  can  tell 
how  much." 

In  this  way  he  put  his  old  friends  completely  at 
their  ease. 


PETER  THE  GREAT.  185 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 

Peter's  reception  at  Zaandam — His  visit  to  the  hut  where  he  once  re- 
sided— Relics  exhibited  there — Peter's  emotion  on  revisiting  this 
place— His  visit  to  the  shipbuilder's  house — Anecdote  of  his  son — The 
Czar's  visit  to  France— Death  of  the  wife  of  Alexis — Birth  of  a 
Prince. 


It  was  nineteen  years  since  Peter  had  worked  in  the 
dock-yard  of  Zaandam,  but  on  returning  there,  he 
found  many  of  his  old  fellow-laborers,  who  welcomed 
him  with  delight,  almost  amounting  to  idolatry.  It 
was  no  sooner  known  that  his  yacht  was  arrived,  than 
the  whole  quay  was  crowded,  and  "  Welcome,  welcome 
Peter  Baas  !  "  resounded  from  a  thousand  mouths. 

An  old  woman  rushed  forward  to  greet  him  as  he 
stepped  on  shore. 

"  My  good  lady,"  said  the  Czar,  "  how  do  you 
know  who  I  am  ?  " 

11  By  your  majesty  having  been  so  often  at  my 
house  and  table  nineteen  years  ago,"  answered  the 
old  woman.     "  I  am  the  wife  of  Baas  Pool." 


186  THE  HISTORY   OF 

Peter  immediately  recognized  her ;  embraced  and 
kissed  her  on  the  forehead,  and  invited  himself  to  dine 
with  her  that  very  day. 

Indeed,  in  his  whole  manner  he  was  the  same  as 
when  he  worked  in  the  dock-yard  of  Zaandam  nine- 
teen years  before ;  the  only  change  observable  was 
that  he  was  now  able  to  endure  a  crowd,  and  did  not 
shrink  from  being  stared  at. 

One  of  the  first  places  he  visited  was  the  little 
cottage  where  he  had  lived,  while  learning  the  art  of 
shipbuilding.  He  found  it  kept  in  neat  order,  and 
dignified  with  the  name  of  the  "Prince's  house." 
This  little  cottage  is  still  carefully  preserved. 

It  is  surrounded  by  a  neat  building,  with  large 
arched  windows,  which  was  built  in  the  year  1823,  by 
the  Princess  of  Orange,  sister  to  the  Emperor  Alex- 
ander, who  purchased  it  in  order  to  preserve  it. 

In  the  first  room  may  still  be  seen  the  little  oak 
table  and  three  chairs,  which  were  the  only  furniture 
of  the  room  when  Peter  occupied  it.  Over  the  chim- 
ney-piece is  inscribed, 

PETRO    MAGNO 

ALEXANDER, 

And  in  the  Russian  and  Dutch, 

"  To  a  great  man  nothing  is  little." 
The  ladder  to  the  loft  still  remains,  and  in  the 


PETER  THE   GREAT.  187 

second  little  room  are  some  models,  and  several  of 
Peter's  working  tools.  Thousands  of  names  are 
scribbled  over  this  once  humble  abode  of  Peter  the 
Great. 

Peter  was  much  affected  on  entering  this  cottage, 
and  mounting  the  ladder  to  the  loft,  he  went  into  a 
small  closet  where  he  had  been  accustomed  to  per- 
form his  devotions,  and  remained  there  alone  half 
an  hour. 

With  his  old  acquaintance  Kist,  the  blacksmith, 
he  visited  the  shop  where  he  worked,  which  was  so 
dirty  that  the  gentleman  who  attended  him  was  for 
retreating ;  but  Peter  called  him  back,  and  ordered 
him  to  blow  the  bellows,  while  he  heated  a  large  piece 
of  iron,  which,  when  heated,  he  beat  out  with  the  great 
hammer. 

Kist  was  still  only  a  journeyman  blacksmith,  and 
the  Czar,  out  of  compassion  for  his  old  acquaintance, 
made  him  a  handsome  present. 

Catharine  was  very  anxious  to  see  this  little  cabin, 
in  which  her  husband  had  lived  and  worked ;  and  she 
and  Peter  went  together  to  Zaandam,  where  they 
dined  at  the  house  of  a  rich  shipbuilder  of  the  name 
of  Kalf ;  who  was  one  of  the  first  persons  who  had 
traded  at  St.  Petersburg. 

This  man  had  a  son  who  had  lately  returned  from 
France,  and  the  Czar  and  Czarina  took  great  pleasure 


188  THE  HISTOEY   OP 

in  hearing  an  anecdote  of  him,  which  I  will  tell  you  in 
the  words  of  Voltaire. 

"  Old  Kalf,  who  had  sent  this  son  of  his  to  Paris, 
to  learn  the  French  tongue,  was  desirous  that  he 
should  live  in  a  genteel  manner  during  his  stay  there ; 
and  accordingly  had  ordered  him  to  lay  aside  the  plain 
garb  which  the  inhabitants  of  Zaandam  are  in  general 
accustomed  to  wear,  to  provide  himself  with  fashion- 
able clothes  in  Paris,  and  to  live  in  a  manner,  rather 
suitable  to  his  fortune  than  to  his  education;  being 
sufficiently  well  acquainted  with  his  son's  disposition, 
to  know  that  this  indulgence  would  have  no  bad  effect 
on  his  natural  frugality  and  sobriety. 

"As  a  Calf>  is  in  the  French  language  called 
Veau,  our  young  traveller  when  he  arrived  at  Paris, 
took  the  name  of  De  Veau.  He  lived  in  a  splendid 
manner,  spent  his  money  freely,  and  made  several  gen- 
teel acquintances. 

"  Nothing  is  more  common  in  Paris,  than  to  be- 
stow without  reserve  the  title  of  Count,  and  Mar- 
quis, whether  a  person  has  any  claim  to  it  or  not,  or 
even  if  he  is  barely  a  gentleman. 

"  Young  Mr.  Kalf,  therefore,  was  always  called 
the  Count  de  Veau,  by  his  acquaintance  and  his  own 
servants ;  he  frequently  made  one  in  the  parties  of 
the  princesses ;  he  played  at  the  Duchess  of  Berri's, 
and  few  strangers  were  treated  with  greater  marks  of 


PETER  THE  GREAT.  189 

distinction,  or  had  more  general  invitations  among 
polite  company. 

"  A  young  nobleman  who  had  been  always  one  of 
his  companions  in  these  parties,  promised  to  pay  him 
a  visit  at  Zaandam,  and  was  as  good  as  his  word. 
When  he  arrived  at  the  village,  he  inquired  for  the 
house  of  "  Count  Kalf ;  "  when  being  shown  into  a 
carpenter's  workshop,  he  there  saw  his  former  gay 
companion,  dressed  in  a  jacket  and  trowsers,  after  the 
Dutch  fashion,  with  an  axe  in  his  hand,  at  the  head 
of  his  father's  workmen.  Here  he  was  received  by 
his  friend,  in  that  plain  manner  to  which  he  had  been 
accustomed  from  his  birth,  and  from  which  he  never 
deviated." 

In  1715,  the  Czar  was  much  delighted  at  the 
tidings  of  the  birth  of  a  grandson ;  but  his  joy  was 
soon  damped  by  hearing  of  the  extreme  illness  of  the 
mother,  the  unhappy  young  wife  of  the  Prince  Alexis. 
The  little  grandson  was  called  Peter  Alexowitz,  (or 
Peter  the  son  of  Alexis,)  and  on  the  death  of  Catha- 
rine, he  became  Peter  the  Second  of  Kussia. 

The  Czar  was  busily  employed  upon  his  works  at 
Schlusselburg  when  he  heard  of  the  extreme  illness  of 
his  daughter-in-law ;  but  he  left  all,  and  set  out  im- 
mediately for  his  capital,  where  he  was  seized  with  a 
sudden  illness  which  confined  him  to  his  room ;  but 
hearing  of  her  alarming  state,  he  ordered  his  attend- 


190  THE   HISTORY   OP 

ants  to  place  him  in  a  chair  moving  on  wheels,  and 
convey  him  to  her  bedside. 

The  life  of  the  poor  young  princess  had  been  so 
unhappy  since  her  marriage,  that  she  seemed  to  hail 
death  as  a  happy  release.  She  refused  all  nourish- 
ment and  medecine,  and  begged  her  physicians  not  to 
force  it  upon  her,  as  she  had  no  other  wish  than  to 
die  in  quiet. 

By  her  extreme  gentleness  of  manner,  and  sweet- 
ness of  temper,  she  had  endeared  herself  to  all  who 
knew  her,  and  the  Czar  and  Czarina,  were  greatly 
grieved  at  her  loss.  The  interview  between  the  dy- 
ing princess  and  the  Czar  was  most  affecting.  As  she 
took  leave  of  him  and  recommended  her  children  and 
servants  to  his  care,  the  stern  hero  burst  into  tears, 
and  assured  her  that  every  wish  of  hers  should  be 
accomplished.  At  midnight  this  amiable  princess 
died. 

The  grief  of  the  court  for  the  princess  was  soon 
converted  into  joy ;  for  the  day  after  her  funeral, 
Catharine  gave  birth  to  a  son,  who  was  also  named 
Peter,  with  the  addition  of  "  Petrowitz,"  or  the  son 
of  Peter.  On  this  joyous  occasion,  there  was  for  ten 
days  a  series  of  entertainments,  balls,  fireworks,  and 
rejoicings  of  every  kind. 

At  one  of  these  entertainments  a  monstrous  pie 
graced  the  centre  of  the  gentlemen's  table,  out  of 


PETER  THE   GREAT.  191 

which  when  it  was  opened,  stepped  forth  a  well- 
shaped  female  dwarf;  who,  having  made  a  speech  to 
the  company  and  drank  their  healths  in  a  glass  of 
wine,  was  lifted  off  from  the  table. 

On  the  ladies'  table,  a  male  dwarf  was  served  up 
in  the  same  manner.  There  was  also  a  third  pie,  out 
of  which  when  it  was  opened  there  flew  twelve  live  par- 
tridges ;  so  that  you  see  the  story  of  Mother  G-oose,  of 
the  "  four  and  twenty  blackbirds  baked  in  a  pie,"  is 
not  so  unlikely  as  you  may  have  thought.  These 
birds  and  dwarfs  were  probably  not  baked  in  the  pie, 
however,  but  placed  there  after  it  was  baked,  and  the 
cover  placed  over  them. 

During  this  festival  the  principal  inhabitants  of 
St.  Petersburg  kept  open  house,  their  tables  spread 
with  cold  meat  and  strong  liquors,  so  that  there  was 
scarcely  a  sober  person  to  be  found  in  the  whole 
city. 

On  the  tenth  day  the  Czar  gave  a  grand  entertain- 
ment at  the  senate-house,  at  the  conclusion  of  which, 
each  guest  was  required  to  drink  off  a  large  glass 
called  the  "double  eagle,"  containing  a  full  bottle 
of  wine. 

"  To  avoid  this,"  says  Captain  Bruce,  "  I  made 
my  escape,  pretending  to  the  officer  on  guard  that  I 
was  going  on  a  message  from  the  Czar,  which  he  be- 
lieving, let  me  pass.     I  went  to  the  house  of  Mr. 


192  THE  HISTORY   OP 

Kelderman,  who  had  formerly  been  one  of  the  Czar's 
tutors,  and  was  still  in  very  great  favor  with  him. 

"  Mr.  Kelderman  followed  me  very  soon,  but  not 
before  he  had  drank  off  his  '  double  eagle,'  and  com- 
ing into  his  own  house,  he  complained  that  he  was 
sick  with  drinking ;  and  sitting  down  by  the  table, 
laid  his  head  on  it,  appearing  as  if  fallen  asleep. 

"  This  being  a  common  custom  with  him,  his  wife 
and  daughters  took  no  notice  of  it ;  till  after  some 
time,  observing  him  neither  to  move  nor  breathe,  and 
coming  close  up  to  him,  we  found  he  was  dead,  which 
threw  the  family  into  great  confusion. 

"  Knowing  the  esteem  in  which  he  stood  with  the 
Czar,  I  went  and  informed  him  of  the  sudden  death 
of  Mr.  Kelderman.  His  Majesty's  concern  at  the 
event  brought  him  immediately  to  the  house,  where 
he  condoled  with  the  widow  for  the  loss  of  her  hus- 
band, ordered  an  honorable  burial  of  the  deceased 
at  his  own  expense,  and  settled  on  her  an  annuity 
for  life." 


PETER  THE   GREAT.  193 


CHAPTER  XIX. 


The  conduct  of  the  unhappy  son  of  Peter  the  Great— The  promise  of  the 
young  Prince  to  his  father— His  flight  to  the  court  of  Charles  Sixth — 
Takes  refuge  in  Naples — Is  persuaded  to  return  to  Eussia — The  Czar's 
declaration^-The  act  of  renunciation — The  trial  of  Alexis. 


We  come  now  to  the  story  of  Alexis,  the  unfortu- 
nate son  of  Peter  the  Great.  Eudocia,  the  wife 
whom  the  Czar  married  when  he  was  seventeen  years 
of  age,  had  never  sympathized  with  him  in  his  efforts 
to  reform  and  civilize  his  countrymen.  She  was  fond 
of  the  old  order  of  things,  and  much  opposed  to 
change ;  and  in  every  thing  she  encouraged  those 
who  opposed  the  Czar  in  his  plans  for  improvement . 

At  length,  by  order  of  her  husband  she  was  shut 
up  in  the  Convent  of  Susdal,  where  she  was  obliged 
to  take  the  veil  under  the  name  of  Helena.  Her  son, 
who  inherited  his  mother's  disposition  in  all  things, 
was  early  educated  in  all  her  views,  and  grew  up  with 
all  her  prejudices. 

He  soon  joined  himself  to  the  party  which  con- 
9 


194  THE   HISTOEY   OE 

demned  all  that  his  father  had  clone ;  and  the  priests 
of  this  party  represented  to  him,  that  at  his  father's 
death,  which  owing  to  his  frequent  illnesses  could  not 
be  far  distant,  he  might  abolish  all  this  new  order  of 
things,  and  revive  the  ancient  customs  and  manners. 

His  associates  were  of  the  lowest  and  vilest,  and 
he  gave  himself  up  to  indulgence  in  vice,  and  de- 
lighted in  those  rough  and  boorish  manners  which 
were  practised  by  the  party  opposed  to  the  Czar.  I 
have  told  you  how  his  young  wife  died,  neglected,  in- 
sulted, deprived  of  all  comforts,  and  wanting  even  the 
necessaries  of  life. 

After  her  death  Peter  wrote  a  letter  to  his  son, 
which  closed  with  the  following  words  : 

"  I  will  still  wait  a  little  time,  to  see  if  you  will 
correct  yourself ;  if  not,  know  that  I  will  cut  you  off 
from  the  succession  as  we  lop  off  a  useless  member. 
Don't  imagine  that  I  mean  only  to  frighten  you; 
don't  rely  upon  the  title  of  being  my  only  son ;  for  if 
I  spare  not  my  own  life  for  the  good  of  my  people,  and 
for  my  country,  how  shall  I  spare  you  ?  I  will  rather 
choose  to  leave  my  kingdom  to  a  foreigner  who  de- 
serves it,  than  to  my  own  son  who  makes  himself  un- 
worthy of  it." 

In  Russia,  the  Emperor  had  the  right  of  disin- 
heriting his  son,  and  appointing  any  one  he  chose  as 
his  successor;  and  Alexis  hearing  about  this  time 


PETER  THE   GEEAT.  195 

that  Catharine  "was  the  mother  of  a  son,  seemed  to 
lose  courage,  and  wrote  to  his  father,  that  he  re- 
nounced the  crown,  and  all  hope  of  reigning  over 
Russia. 

"  I  take  God  to  witness,"  says  he,  "  that  I  never 
will  pretend  to  the  succession;  I  put  my  children 
into  your  hands,  and  I  desire  only  a  provision  for 
life." 

I  have  before  me  a  translation  of  the  letters  of  the 
Gzar  to  his  son,  and  also  of  the  replies  of  Alexis.  I 
wish  that  the  limits  of  this  little  work  would  allow 
of  my  inserting  them  entire,  but  they  are  very  long, 
and  would  take  up  too  much  room.  I  cannot  refrain, 
however,  from  giving  one  extract  from  the  second 
letter  of  the  Czar. 

"  You  speak  of  the  succession,  as  if  I  stood  in 
need  of  your  consent  in  the  disposal  thereof.  I  re- 
proached you  with  the  aversion  you  have  shown  to  all 
kinds  of  business,  and  signified  to  you  that  I  was 
highly  dissatisfied  with  your  conduct  in  general ; 
but  to  these  particulars  you  have  given  me  no 
answer. 

"  Parental  exhortations  make  no  impression  on 
you,  wherefore  I  resolve  to  write  you  this  once  for  the 
last  time.  If  you  despise  the  advices  I  give  you 
white  I  am  alive,  what  regard  will  you  pay  to  them 
after  my  death  ?     But  though  you  had  the  inclination 


196  THE    HISTORY    OF 

at  present  to  be  true  to  your  promises,  yet  a  corrupt 
priesthood  will  be  able  to*  turn  you  at  pleasure,  and 
force  you  to  falsify  them. 

"  They  have  no  dependence  but  upon  you.  You 
have  no  sense  of  gratitude  towards  him  who  gave  you 
your  being.  Have  you  ever  assisted  him  in  toils  and 
labors  since  you  arrived  at  the  age  of  maturity  ?  Do 
you  not  censure  and  condemn,  nay,  even  affect  to  hold 
in  detestation,  whatever  I  do  for  the  good  of  my 
people  ? 

"  In  a  word,  I  have  reason  to  conclude  that  if  you 
survive  me  you  will  overturn  every  thing  that  I  have 
done.  Take  your  choice  ;  either  endeavor  to  make 
yourself  worthy  of  the  throne,  or  embrace  a  monastic 
life.  I  expect  your  answer,  either  in  writing,  or  by 
word  of  mouth,  otherwise  I  shall  treat  you  as  a  com- 
mon malefactor." 

To  this  letter  Alexis  replied,  asking  permission  to 
enter  a  monastery  and  become  a  monk.  This  was  be- 
fore the  second  visit  of  the  Czar  to  Germany  and 
France,  and  he  immediately  went  to  pay  his  son  a 
visit.  Alexis,  who  was,  or  pretended  to  be  sick, 
received  his  father  in  bed,  and  assured  him  with 
solemn  oaths,  that  it  was  his  earnest  desire  to  enter  a 
monastery. 

The  Czar  gave  him  six  months  to  consider  on  the 
subject,  and  then  set  out  on  his  travels.     He  had 


PETER  THE  GEEAT.  197 

hardly  arrived  in  Copenhagen,  however,  when  he 
heard  that  his  son  was  again  surrounded  by  evil- 
minded  and  discontented  people,  whose  only  object 
was  to  excite  his  feelings  against  his  father. 

On  hearing  this,  the  Czar  wrote  to  Alexis  that  he 
had  only  to  choose  between  a  throne  and  a  convent, 
and  that  if  he  had  any  thoughts  of  succeeding  to  the 
Empire  of  Russia,  he  must  at  once  set  out  and  join 
him  at  Copenhagen.  But  now  the  advisers  of  Alexis 
represented  to  him  that  it  would  be  a  most  unsafe  thing 
to  place  himself  in  the  hands  of  a  father  who  was  al- 
ready angry  at  him,  and  a  step-mother  whose  object 
it  would  be  to  excite  his  father  still  more  against 
him. 

Alexis  yielding  to  their  advice,  pretended  that  he 
was  making  preparations  to  join  the  Czar,  and  under 
this  pretence  succeeded  in  obtaining  a  large  sum  of 
money  from  Menzikoff;  but  to  the  surprise  of  all,  ex- 
cepting those  who  were  in  his  secret,  instead  of  taking 
the  road  to  Copenhagen,  he  took  that  which  led  to 
Vienna,  and  there  threw  himself  under  the  protection 
of  his  brother-in-law,  Charles  Sixth,  intending  to  re- 
main at  his  court  till  after  the  death  of  his  father. 

Charles,  however,  not  thinking  it  prudent  to  give 
offence  to  the  Czar  of  Russia,  gave  Alexis  such  a  re- 
ception, that  not  finding  himself  very  welcome,  he 
soon  removed  to  Naples.     As  soon  as  Peter  heard 


198  THE   HISTOKY   OF 

that  his  son  was  there,  he  despatched  Romanzoff,  a 
captain  of  his  guards,  and  Tolstoy,  his  privy- coun- 
sellor, with  the  following  letter  to  him  written  with  his 
own  hand. 

"  I  now  write  to  you  for  the  last  time,  to  acquaint 
you  that  you  must  instantly  comply  with  my  orders, 
which  will  be  communicated  to  you  by  Tolstoy  and 
Romanzoff. 

"  If  you  obey,  I  give  you  my  sacred  word  and 
promise,  that  I  will  not  punish  you;  and  that,  if  you 
will  return  home,  I  will  love  you  more  than  ever. 
But,  if  you  do  not,  I,  as  your  father,  and  in  virtue  of 
the  authority  which  Grod  has  given  me  over  you,  de- 
nounce against  you  my  eternal  curse ;  and  as  your 
sovereign,  declare  to  you  that  I  will  find  means  to 
punish  your  disobedience,  in  which  I  trust  God  him- 
self will  assist  me,  and  espouse  the  just  cause  of  an 
injured  parent  and  king. 

"  For  the  rest,  remember  that  I  have  never  laid 
any  restraint  upon  you.  Was  I  obliged  to  leave  you 
at  liberty  to  choose  your  way  of  life  ?  Had  I  not 
the  power  in  my  own  hands  to  oblige  you  to  con- 
form to  my  will  ?  I  had  only  to  command  and  make 
myself  obeyed." 

Persuasions,  promises,  and  threats,  were  employed 

for  a  long  time  by  the  two  envoys  of  the  Czar,  before 

hey  could  induce  Alexis   to  return  with  them  to 


PETER  THE   GEEAT.  199 

Russia.  But  at  length,  on  their  often  repeating  to 
him  his  father's  promise,  that  he  would  not  only 
pardon  him  but  would  love  him  better  than  ever,  the 
prince  consented  to  accompany  them. 

They  arrived  at  Moscow  in  February,  1718,  and 
on  the  same  day,  Alexis  had  a  long  interview  with 
his  father,  who  had  just  returned  from  his  travels. 
They  were  closeted  together  for  a  long  time,  and  a 
report  spread  through  the  city  that  the  Czar  and  his 
son  were  reconciled,  and  all  the  past  was  to  be 
forgotten. 

What  really  passed  between  them  is  not  known, 
but  the  next  day  orders  were  issued  for  the  regiments 
of  guards  to  be  under  arms  at  break  of  day,  and  for 
all  the  Czar's  ministers,  boyards,  and  councillors,  to 
repair  to  the  great  hall  of  the  castle.  The  priests 
also,  and  the  monks  of  St.  Basile,  were  to  assemble 
in  the  Cathedral  at  the  tolling  of  the  great  bell. 

The  unhappy  Prince  was  then  conducted  to  the 
great  castle,  and  when  brought  into  the  presence  of 
his  father,  he  threw  himself  in  tears  at  his  feet,  and 
presented  in  writing  a  confession  of  his  faults,  declar- 
ing himself  unworthy  of  the  throne,  and  imploring 
only  that  his  life  might  be  "spared. 

The  Czar  raised  him  up  and  led  him  into  a  private 
room,  where  he  put  many  questions  to  him,  declaring 
that  if  he  concealed  any  thing  relating  to  his  elope- 


200  THE   HISTOET   OF 

ment,  his  life  should  answer  for  it.  When  this  inter- 
view was  ended,  the  Prince  was  brought  back  to 
the  great  hall,  where  the  Czar's  declaration,  which 
had  before  been  prepared,  was  publicly  read  in  his 
presence. 

This  declaration  is  very  long,  and  would  take  up 
many  pages  of  a  book  like  this.  By  the  Czar's  order, 
it  was  to  be  published  throughout  the  kingdom,  that 
all  might  know  his  determination  with  regard  to  his 
son,  and  the  reasons  which  had  led  to  it. 

In  this  paper  the  Czar  begins  at  the  beginning  of 
the  story,  and  relates  the  conduct  of  his  son,  and  his 
efforts  to  reform  him.  His  dislike  of  study,  his  fond- 
ness for  low  company,  his  opposition  to  his  father, 
and  his  treatment  of  his  wife,  are  all  set  forth  in  this 
declaration  ;  together  with  the  fact  of  his  having 
asked  the  Emperor  of  Germany  to  defend  him  by 
force  of  arms  against  his  father. 

The  declaration  closes  with  these  words : 

"  In  this  manner  has  our  son  returned ;  and  al- 
though, by  his  withdrawing  himself  and  raising  calum- 
nies against  us,  he  has  deserved  to  be  punished  with 
death,  yet  out  of  our  paternal  affection  we  pardon  his 
crimes ;  but  considering  his  unworthiness,  and  the 
series  of  his  irregular  conduct,  we  cannot  in  conscience 
leave  him  the  succession  to  the  throne  of  Russia ; 
foreseeing  that  by  his  vicious  courses,  he  would,  after 


PETEE  THE    GKEAT.  201 

our  decease,  entirely  destroy  the  glory  of  our  nation, 
and  the  safety  of  our  dominions,  which  we  have  re- 
covered from  the  enemy. 

"  Now,  as  we  should  pity  our  states,  and  our 
faithful  subjects,  if,  by  such  a  successor,  we  should 
throw  them  back  into  a  much  worse  condition  than 
ever  they  were  yet;  so,  by  the  paternal  authority, 
and,  in  quality  of  sovereign  prince,  in  consideration  of 
the  safety  of  our  dominions,  we  do  deprive  our  said 
son  Alexis,  for  his  crimes  and  unworthiness,  of  the 
succession  after  us  to  our  throne  of  Russia,  even 
though  there  should  not  remain  one  single  person 
o£our  family  after  us. 

"  And  we  do  constitute  and  declare,  successor  to 
the  said  throne  after  us,  our  second  son,  Peter,* 
though  yet  very  young,  having  no  successor  that  is 
older. 

"  We  lay  upon  our  said  son  Alexis,  our  paternal 
curse,  if  ever  at  any  time  he  pretends  to,  or  reclakns, 
the  said  succession. 

"  And  we  desire  our  faithful  subjects,  whether 
ecclesiastics,  or  seculars,  of  all  ranks  and  conditions, 
and  the  whole  Rusian  nation,  in  conformity  to  this 
constitution  and  our  will,  to  acknowledge  and  con- 
sider our  son  Peter,  appointed  by  us  to  succeed,  as 

*  This  was  the  son  of  the  Empress  Catharine,  who  died  April  15th,  1719. 


202  THE   IIISTOEY   OP 

lawful  successor,  and  agreeably  to  this  our  constitu- 
tion, to  confirm  the  whole  by  oath,  before  the  holy 
altar,  upon  the  holy  gospel,  kissing  the  cross. 

"  And  all  those  who  shall  ever  at  any  time  oppose 
this  our  will,  and  who  from  this  day  forward,  shall 
dare  to  consider  our  son  Alexis  as  successor,  or  assist 
him  for  that  purpose,  declare  them  traitors  to  us 
and  our  country.  And  we  have  ordered  that  these 
presents  shall  be  every  where  published  and  pro- 
mulgated, to  the  end  that  no  person  may  pretend 
ignorance." 

After  this,  was  read  the  "  Act  of  K enunciation," 
by  which  Alexis  publicly  gave  up  all  right  to  the 
throne  of  Russia,  in  these  words  : 

"  I,  the  undersigned,  declare  before  the  holy 
Evangelists,  that  I  acknowledge  and  avow  this  exclu- 
sion to  be  just,  as  having  deserved  it  by  my  crimes 
and  unworthiness ;  and  I  bind  myself,  and  swear  in 
the  name  of  the  Sacred  and  Almighty  Trinity,  to  sub- 
mit myself  wholly  to  this  my  father's  will ;  never  to 
seek  after  this  succession,  never  to  lay  claim  to  it, 
never  to  accept  it  under  any  pretence  whatever; 
and  I  acknowledge  as  lawful  successor  my  brother 
Peter ;  on  which  I  kiss  the  holy  cross,  and  sign  these 
presents  with  my  own  hand. — Alexis." 

To  the  tolling  of  the  solemn  bell  the  long  proces- 
sion then  moved  to  the  cathedral,  where,  in  the  pres- 


PETER   THE   GREAT.  203 

ence  of  the  whole  body  of  clergy,  these  papers  were  a 
second  time  read. 

"We  can  find  no  excuse  for  the  Czar  in  thus  break- 
ing the  solemn  promise  and  oath  given  to  his  son,  that 
if  he  would  return  to  Eussia  he  would  forgive  him, 
and  love  him  better  than  ever.  There  are  those  who 
apologize  for  him  by  saying,  that  the  Czar  intended 
to  say  that  he  would  grant  him  his  love  and  forgive- 
ness on  condition  that  he  would  remain  shut  up  in  a 
monastery  for  the  rest  of  his  days. 

Whether  the  Czar  actually  intended  to  fulfil  the 
promise  made,  and  there  were  circumstances  after  the 
return  of  Alexis  which  altered  his  determination,  we 
do  not  know,  neither  can  we  tell  what  occurred  dur- 
ing those  long  secret  conferences  between  the  Czar 
and  his  son,  immediately  after  his  return. 

There  were  numerous  questions  put  to  Alexis,  in 
writing,  in  his  answers  to  which  he  seems  determined 
to  make  himself  appear  as  guilty  as  possible,  making 
admissions,  and  stating  circumstances,  which  he  might 
as  well  have  kept  secret,  and  even  by  telling  false- 
hoods endeavoring  to  make  his- guilt  appear  stronger. 

Though  pretending  to  give  up  to  his  father  the 
names  of  those  who  had  assisted  him  in  his  flight, 
and  encouraged  him  in  his  disobedience,  he  concealed 
several  of  them,  and  in  his  pretended  confessions  at 
one  time,  he  contradicted  those  made  at  another. 


204  THE   HISTORY   OF 

When  the  Czar,  therefore,  came  to  the  conclusion 
to  have  his  son  formally  tried  by  the  great  officers  of 
state,  the  judges  and  the  bishops,  it  is  supposed  that 
he  yielded  to  a  painful  necessity,  requiring  the  sacri- 
fice of  one  person,  rather  than  that  the  whole  empire 
should  be  endangered;  and  that  the  Czar  for  the 
time  crushed  his  feelings  as  a  father,  for  the  good 
of  the  country  whose  welfare  he  had  so  much  at 
heart. 

The  crimes  of  Alexis  had  been  such  that  by  the 
laws  of  Russia,  the  Czar  had  the  right  to  punish  him 
with  death;  and  yet  he  preferred  to  submit  the  case 
to  the  judges*  of  the  land,(the  nobles,  and  the  clergy. 
In  his  address  to  the  court  appointed  to  try  his  son 
the  Czar  thus  explains  himself : 

"  Though,  according  to  all  laws  civil  and  divine, 
and  especially  those  of  this  empire,  which  grant  an 
absolute  jurisdiction  to  fathers  over  their  children, 
(even  fathers  in  private  life,)  we  have  a  full  and  un- 
limited power  to  judge  our  son  for  his  crimes,  accord- 
ing to  our  pleasure,  without  asking  the  advice  of  any 
person  whatsoever. 

"  Yet  as  men  are  more  liable  to  prejudice  and 
partiality  in  their  own  affairs,  than  in  those  of  others, 
and  as  the  most  eminent  and  expert  physicians  rely 
not  on  their  own  judgment  concerning  themselves, 
but  call  in  the  advice  and  assistance  of  others  ;  so  we, 


PETER   THE   GREAT.  205 

under  the  fear  of  God,  and  an  awful  dread  of  offend- 
ing him,  in  like  manner  make  known  our  disease,  and 
apply  to  yon  for  a  cure ;  being  apprehensive  of  eter- 
nal death  if,  ignorant  perhaps  of  the  nature  of  our  dis- 
temper we  should  attempt  to  cure  ourselves  ;  and  the 
rather  as  in  a  solemn  appeal  to  Almighty  God,  I  have 
signed,  sworn,  and  confirmed  a  promise  of  pardon  to 
my  son,  in  case  he  should  declare  to  me  the  truth. 

"  And  though  he  has  violated  this  promise,  by 
concealing  the  most  important  circumstances  of  his 
rebellious  design  against  us ;  yet,  that  we  may  not  in 
any  thing  swerve  from  our  obligations,  we  pray  you 
to  consider  this  affair  with  seriousness  and  attention, 
and  report  what  punishment  he  deserves,  without  fa- 
vor or  partiality  either  to  him  or  me ;  for  should  you 
apprehend  that  he  deserves  but  a  slight  punishment, 
it  will  be  disagreeable  to  me.  I  swear  to  you  by  the 
great  God  and  his  judgments,  that  you  have  nothing 
to  fear  on  this  head. 

"  Neither  let  the  reflection  that  you  are  about  to 
pass  sentence  on  the  son  of  your  prince,  have  any  in- 
fluence on  you,  but  administer  justice  without  respect 
of  persons,  and  destroy  not  your  own  souls  and  mine< 
also,  by  doing  any  thing  to  injure  our  country,  or 
upbraid  our  consciences,  in  the  great  and  terrible  day 
of  judgment." 


206  THE  HISTORY   OF 


CHAPTER  XX. 


Opinion  of  the  Clergy— Last  examination  of  Prince  Alexis— His  Condem- 
nation— Eeports  as  to  Catharine's  influence  in  the  matter— Testimony 
of  others  on  the  subject — Death  of  Alexis— Opinions  of  some  persons, 
as  to  the  Manner  of  his  Heath— The  Czar  turns  his  attention  once  moro 
to  Internal  Improvements. 


On  the  first  of  July  the  clergy,  whose  advice  had  been 
asked  by  the  Czar,  sent  in  their  opinion  in  writing, 
in  which  a  beautiful  contrast  between  the  mercy  of 
Jesus  Christ  and  the  severity  of  the  Jewish  law,  is 
presented  to  the  father  and  sovereign  about  to  pro- 
nounce sentence  upon  his  son  and  subject. 

After  stating  that  this  affair  does  not  properly  fall 
within  their  control,  the  Emperor  of  Russia  having 
full  right  to  act  as  seems  best  to  himself  in  the  case, 
they  proceed  to  bring  forward  texts  from  Scripture, 
particularly  from  Leviticus,  such  as  "  Cursed  be  he  that 
curseth  father  and  mother,"  and  others  of  like  import, 
from  other  parts  of  the  Holy  Book ;  and  then  con- 
clude in  these  words : 


PETER  THE  GEEAT.  207 

"  If  his  Majesty  is  inclined  to  punish  the  offender 
according  to  his  deeds,  and  the  measure  of  his  crimes, 
he  has  before  him  the  examples  in  the  Old  Testament ; 
if,  on  the  other  hand,  he  is  inclined  to  show  mercy,  he 
has  a  pattern  in  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  who  receives 
the  prodigal  son,  when  returning  with  a  contrite  heart, 
and  who  prefers  mercy  to  burnt  offerings. 

"  He  has  likewise  the  example  of  David,  who 
spared  his  son  Absalom,  who  had  rebelled  against  and 
persecuted  him,  saying  to  his  captains  when  going 
forth  to  the  fight,  '  Spare  my  son  Absalom  ! '  The 
father  was  here  inclined  to  mercy,  but  Divine  justice 
suffered  not  the  offender  to  go  unpunished. 

"  The  heart  of  the  Czar  is  in  the  hands  of  G-od; 
let  him  take  that  side  to  which  it  shall  please  the  Al- 
mighty to  direct  him." 

On  the  same  day  that  this  opinion  was  presented 
to  the  Czar  in  writing,  his  unhappy  son  was  again  and 
for  the  last  time  examined,  and  signed  his  final  con- 
fession, wherein  he  acknowledges  himself  to  have  been 
"  a  bigot  in  his  youthful  days,  to  have  frequented  the 
company  of  priests  and  monks,  to  have  drank  with 
them,  and  to  have  imbibed  from  their  conversations 
the  first  impressions  of  dislike  to  the  duties  of  his 
station  and  even  to  the  person  of  his  father." 

On  the  6th  of  July,  1718,  the  Prince  Alexis  was 
unanimously  condemned  to  death,  by  one  hundred  and 


208  THE   HISTORY    OF 

forty-four  judges,  not  one  of  whom  hinted  at  a  milder 
punishment.  And  the  Czar  was  so  well  satisfied  of 
the  justice  of  this  sentence,  that  he  submitted  it  to 
the  judgment  of  every  other  nation,  by  causing  the 
whole  proceedings  to  be  printed  and  translated  into 
many  different  languages. 

"  All  Europe,"  says  Voltaire,  "  was  divided  in  its 
sentiments,  whether  most  to  pity  a  young  prince,  prose- 
cuted by  his  own  father,  and  condemned  to  lose  his  life, 
by  those  who  were  one  day  to  have  been  his  sub- 
jects; or  the  father,  who  thought  himself  under  a 
necessity  to  sacrifice  his  own  son  to  the  welfare  of  his 
nation." 

It  was  said  by  some  foreign  writers,  that  Catha- 
rine, who  was  hated  by  the  young  Prince,  and  whom 
he  had  publicly  threatened  with  terrible  vengeance 
whenever  he  should  ascend  the  throne,  had  used  her 
wonderful  influence  over  the  Czar,  to  persuade  him 
to  bring  his  son  to  trial,  and  to  condemn  him  to 
death. 

Many  other  absurd  stories  were  added  to  this,  of 
the  treatment  of  Alexis  by  his  father,  and  of  Catha- 
rine by  the  Czar,  which  are  all  contradicted  by  the 
foreign  ministers  who  were  at  that  time  resident  at  the 
Court  of  Russia. 

Voltaire  says,  "  I  have  now  before  me  the  me- 
moirs of  a  public  minister,  in  which  I  find  the  follow- 


PETER   THE   GREAT.  209 

ing  words:  'I  was  present  when  the  Czar  told  the 
Duke  of  Holstein,  that  the  Czarina  Catharine  had 
begged  of  him  to  prevent  the  sentence  passed  upon 
Alexis  being  publicly  read  to  that  Prince. 

"  '  Content  yourself,'  said  she,  '  with  obliging  him 
to  turn  monk ;  for  this  public  and  formal  condem- 
nation of  your  son  will  reflect  an  odium  on  your 
grandson.' 

"  The  Czar,  however,  would  not  listen  to  this  ad- 
vice of  Catharine,  but  ordered  the  sentence  to  be 
publicly  read  to  his  son.  When  these  awful  words 
were  read  to  the  young  Prince :  f  The  laws  divine 
and  ecclesiastical,  civil  and  military,  condemn  to 
death  without  mercy,  those  whose  attempts  against 
their  father,  and  their  sovereign,  have  been  fully 
proved,'  he  fell  into  a  fit,  which  turned  to  apoplexy, 
and  it  was  with  great  difficulty  that  he  was  recovered 
at  that  time. 

"  Afterwards,  when  he  came  a  little  to  himself,  and 
in  the  dreadful  interval  between  life  and  death,  he 
sent  to  beg  that  his  father  would  come  to  him.  The 
Czar  immediately  complied  with  this  request,  and 
when  they  met,  both  father  and  son  burst  into  a  flood 
of  tears. 

"  The  unfortunate  young  man  then  asked  his  fa- 
ther's forgiveness,  which  he  gave  him  publicly ;  he 
then  received  the  sacrament,  and  on  the  7th  of  July, 


210  THE  HISTOEY   OF 

the  day  after  the  sentence  of  death  had  been  pro- 
nounced against  him,  at  six  o'clock  in  the  evening,  the 
Prince  Alexis  died  in  the  presence  of  the  whole 
Court. 

"  His  body  was  immediately  carried  to  the  cathe- 
dral, where  it  lay  in  state,  exposed  to  public  view  for 
four  days,  after  which  it  was  interred  in  the  church 
of  the  citadel,  by  the  side  of  his  late  princess ;  the 
Czar  and  Czarina  attending  at  the  funeral. 

There  are  many  stories  told  by  writers  of  that 
time,  who  would  render  the  memory  of  Peter  the 
Great  odious,  which  seem  very  improbable,  and  cer- 
tainly are  very  contradictory.  By  some  it  is  said  that 
the  Czar  beheaded  his  son  with  his  own  hand,  and 
afterwards  caused  the  head  to  be  sewed  on  again. 
While  others  declare  that  the  young  Prince  was  de- 
spatched by  poison  given  to  him  by  his  father." 

Voltaire  asks,  "  How  was  it  possible  that  the  Czar 
could  have  beheaded  his  son  with  his  own  hand, 
when  extreme  unction  was  administered  to  the  latter 
in  the  presence  of  the  whole  court  ?  Was  he  dead, 
when  the  sacred  oil  was  poured  upon  his  head  ? 
When,  or  how  could  this  dissevered  head  have  been 
rejoined  to  its  trunk  ?  It  is  well  known,  that  the 
prince  was  not  left  alone  a  single  moment,  from  the 
reading  of  his  sentence  to  him,  to  the  instant  of  his 
death. 


PETER  THE   GREAT.  211 

"  Besides,  this  story  of  the  Czar's  having  had  re- 
course to  the  sword,  acquits  him  at  least  of  having 
made  use  of  poison.  I  will  allow,"  he  adds,  "  that  it 
is  somewhat  uncommon,  that  a  young  man  in  the 
vigor  of  his  days,  should  die  of  a  sudden  fright,  occa- 
sioned by  hearing  the  sentence  of  his  own  death  read 
to  him,  and  especially  when  it  was  a  sentence  that  he 
expected ;  but,  after  all,  physcians  will  tell  us  that  it 
is  a  thing  not  impossible." 

Besides,  after  sentence  of  death  had  been  publicly 
pronounced  upon  Alexis  by  one  hundred  and  forty- 
four  judges,  why  should  the  Czar  poison  him  privately, 
and  thus  suffer  his  memory  to  be  stained  with  the 
murder  of  his  son,  when  he  could  easily  have  sup- 
ported the  character  of  an  upright  though  severe 
judge? 

"  Such,  then,"  says  Yoltaire,  "  was  the  dear  and 
fatal  price  at  which  Peter  the  Great  purchased  the 
happiness  of  his  people,  and  such  are  some  of  the  many 
difficulties  he  had  to  overcome,  in  the  midst  of  a  long 
and  dangerous  war  with  other  nations,  and  an  unnatu- 
ral rebellion  at  home. 

"  He  saw  one  half  of  his  family  plotting  against 
him,  the  greater  number  of  the  priesthood  obstinately 
bent  on  overturning  his  designs,  and  almost  the  whole 
nation  opposing  its  own  happiness  and  prosperity. 
There  were  prejudices  to  overcome,  discontents  to  allay; 


212  THE   HISTOEY   OF 

in  a  word,  there  was  created  a  new  generation  formed 
by  his  care,  to  entertain  the  proper  ideas  of  happi- 
ness and  glory,  which  their  fathers  were  not  able  to 
bear." 

If  we  look  upon  Peter  the  Great  throughout  this 
sad  affair,  as  having  acted  only  as  the  father  of  his 
country,  we  realize  what  an  immense  sacrifice  he  made 
of  his  own  private  feelings  for^he  sake  of  the  great 
family  whose  welfare  he  had  so  much  at  heart. 

The  fears  of  the  Czar,  as  to  rebellion  among  his 
own  subjects,  and  his  anxieties  lest  his  efforts  for  the 
improvement  of  his  nation  should  all  be  overthrown, 
now  being  for  the  time  at  rest,  he  turned  his  atten- 
tion once  more  towards  the  introduction  of  manufac- 
tures, and  public  works  of  every  kind ;  opened  new 
branches  of  trade,  and  constructed  canals  which  joined 
rivers,  and  seas,  and  people,  which  nature  had  sepa- 
rated from  each  other. 

A  regular  police  was  established,  schools  and 
hospitals  sprang  up  in  many  cities  of  the  empire, 
the  swarms  of  beggars  were  cleared  from  the  great 
cities,  and  these  wretched  creatures  who  had  lived 
only  upon  the  charity  of  others,  were  set  to  work  for 
their  living. 

The  City  of  St.  Petersburg  was  well  lighted  with 
lamps  at  night,  the  streets  were  nicely  paved,  pumps 
were  placed  at  different  points  for  supplying  water  in 


PETER  THE   GREAT.  213 

case  of  fire,  and  every  thing  was  contrived  by  the  Czar 
for  the  safety  of  the  lives  and  property  of  his  sub- 
jects. 

Peter  in  person  superintended  the  iron  and  steel 
manufactures,  corn  mills,  powder  mills,  mills  for 
sawing  timber,  manufactories  for  cordage  and  sail 
cloths,  and  gave  directions  to  brick-makers,  slaters 
and  cloth-weavers. 

Great  numbers  of  workmen  from  France  came  to 
settle  in  Russia,  and  set  up  their  manufactories  for 
making  fine  looking-glass,  looms  for  working  curious 
tapestry,  and  the  making  of  gold  and  silver  thread. 

Woollen  manufactures  and  silk  manufactures 
flourished,  and  as  fine  linen  was  soon  made  in  Mos- 
cow as  in  Holland.  Iron  mines  were  worked  most 
vigorously,  and  mines  of  gold  and  silver  were  dis- 
covered. 

For  the  success  of  all  these  works,  and  many 
more  of  which  I  have  not  spoken,  it  was  necessary 
that  their  great  founder  should  at  times  be  present 
to  inspect  operations,  and  give  directions  himself ;  and 
even  that  he  should  work  at  them  with  his  own 
hands,  as  he  had  done  years  before,  at  the  building, 
rigging  and  sailing  of  ships. 

When  canals  were  to  be  dug  in  marshy  and  diffi- 
cult places,  and  the  workmen  were  almost  ready  to 
give  out  discouraged,  then  often  was  the  Czar  to  be 


214  THE    HISTOEY   OF 

seen  at  the  head  of  the  workmen,  digging  the  ground, 
and  carrying  it  away  himself. 

In  Voltaire's  time  the  tools  were  preserved  and 
shown  which  Peter  used  in  digging  and  levelling  the 
earth  for  these  canals,  and  it  may  be  they  are  still  to 
be  exhibited  to  the  curious  traveller  in  Russia. 

He  encouraged  trade,  made  new  and  good  laws, 
and  insisted  upon  their  being  put  in  force,  improved 
•the  clergy,  and  reformed  the  customs  of  the  Russian 
church. 

Every  where  Peter  was  busy,  laboring  for  the 
good  of  his  people.  Nothing  was  too  great  for  him 
to  undertake ;  nothing  that  tended  to  their  improve- 
ment too  little  for  him  to  give  it  a  helping  hand. 


PETEE  THE  GEEAT.  215 


CHAPTER  XXL 


The  "War  with  Sweden  draws  to  a  close — Plans  proposed  for  the  Recon- 
ciliation of  the  two  great  Monarchs — The  designs  of  Charles  Twelfth 
npon  Norway— His  Power  of  Endurance — A  random  Shot  and  its 
Consequences— Peace  proclaimed— Peter  receives  the  title  of- "Em- 
peror and  Father  of  his  Country  "—Expedition  against  Persia- 
Coronation  of  Catharine— Story  of  Moens  and  his  Sister. 


great  enterprises,  this  minute  review  of  the 
whole  Russian  empire,  and  the  melancholy  proceed- 
ings against  his  unhappy  son,  were  not  the  only  ob- 
jects which  called  for  the  attention  of  the  Czar  of 
Russia.  There  was  still  a  war  going  on  with  Sweden, 
though  not  very  vigorously  just  now ;  still,  it  was 
necessary  that  Peter  should  give  his  attention  to  the 
security  of  his  kingdom  from  foes  without,  as  well  as 
settling  order  and  tranquillity  at  home. 

But  now  this  long  continued  war  was  drawing  to 
a  close.  A  plan  had  been  formed  by  the  prime 
minister  and  chief  adviser  of  Charles  Twelfth,  to 
reconcile  the  two   great    contending  monarchs,  who 


216  THE   HISTOEY   OF 

were,  according  to  this  plan,  to  unite  together,  and 
crush  the  other  powers  of  Europe. 

Some  steps  had  already  been  taken  towards  this 
end.  There  had  been  an  exchange  of  officers  of  rank, 
who  had  been  long  detained  in  the  two  countries  as 
prisoners  of  war,  and  just  as  this  great  plan  was 
about  to  be  perfected,  a  random  shot  from  the  works 
of  Fredericstadt,  in  Norway,  crushed  all  these  pro- 
jects, and  changed  the  whole  face  of  affairs. 

Charles  Twelfth,  who  had  turned  his  attention 
towards  Norway,  was  determined  to  make  himself 
master  of  that  kingdom,  and  then  to  advance  upon 
England.  In  the  month  of  December,  1718,  he  laid 
siege  to  Fredericstadt,  a  place  of  great  strength  and 
importance,  and  considered  as  the  key  of  the  king- 
dom of  Norway. 

The  cold  was  intense.  The  soldiers  were  so 
benumbed  that  it  was  almost  impossible  for  them  to 
break  the  ground,  which  was  so  hardened  by  frost  that 
it  was  like  piercing  into  the  solid  rock.  But  nothing 
could  resist  the  perseverance  of  the  Swedes,  when 
they  saw  their  king  at  their  head,  sharing  in  all  their 
labors,  their  fatigues  and  sufferings. 

The  constitution  of  Charles,  strengthened  by 
eighteen  years  of  severe  labor,  was  hardened  to  such 
a  degree  that  he  slept  in  the  open  field  in  Norway, 


PETER  THE   GREAT.  211 

with  only  a  cloak  thrown  over  him,  while  many  of  the 
soldiers  on  duty  dropped  dead  with  the  cold. 

One  evening  Charles  went  out  to  view  the 
trenches,  and  not  finding  them  so  far  advanced  as  he 
had  expected,  he  expressed  his  surprise  and  dis- 
pleasure. 

The  French  engineer  who  conducted  the  siege,  as- 
sured him  that  the  place  would  be  taken  in  eight 
days.  "  Well,  we  shall  see !  "  said  the  king,  and 
went  on  surveying  the  works.  He  stopped  at  an 
angle,  and  kneeling  down  and  resting  his  elbow  on 
the  parapet,  he  watched  the  men  as  they  worked  by 
starlight. 

Thus  nearly  half  his  body  was  exposed  to  a  bat- 
tery of  cannon,  pointed  directly  against  the  angle 
where  he  stood.  Two  or  three  French  officers  were 
near  him  giving  orders,  when  they  suddenly  saw  the 
king  fall  over  upon  the  parapet  with  a  deep  sigh. 

They  ran  to  him  but  he  was  already  dead.  A 
ball  of  half  a  p  ound  had  struck  him  upon  the  temple, 
crushing  in  his  skull,  and  beating  out  his  eyes.  At 
sight  of  this  shocking  spectacle  one  of  the  French  of- 
ficers, a  man  of  a  singular  turn  of  mind,  and  great  in- 
difference of  manner,  said : 

"Come  gentlemen,  the  farce  is  ended;  let  us  go 
home  to  supper  !  " 

The  officers  who  gathered  round  him  agreed  that 
10 


218  THE   HISTORY   OF 

it  would  be  best  for  the  time,  to  keep  the  news  of  his 
death  from  the  soldiers.  They,  therefore  wrapped 
the  body  in  a  cloak,  put  a  hat  and  wig  upon  the  head, 
and  carried  Charles  "Twelfth  under  the  name  of  one 
Captain  Carlsberg  through  the  midst  of  the  troops, 
who  saw  the  body  of  their  dead  king  pass  by  them, 
without  ever  dreaming  that  it  was  his  majesty. 

"  Thus,"  says  Voltaire,  "  fell  Charles  Twelfth  of 
Sweden  at  the  age  of  thirty-six  years  and  a  half,  after 
having  experienced  all  the  grandeur  of  prosperity,  and 
all  the  hardships  of  adversity,  without  being  either 
softened  by  the  one,  or  in  the  least  disturbed  by  the 
other." 

The  king  was  no  sooner  dead,  than  the  siege  was 
abandoned,  and  a  total  change  took  place  in  the  gov- 
ernment. The  sister  of  Charles,  Ulrica,  was  ap- 
pointed Queen,  but  she  soon  gave  the  sovereign 
power  into  the  hands  of  her  husband,  the  prince  of 
Hesse,  who  became  King  of  Sweden. 

In  1720,  measures  were  taken  to  bring  about 
peace  between  Russia  and  Sweden,  and  on  the  10th 
of  November,  1721 ,  a  treaty  of  peace  was  signed  at 
Nystadt,  by  which  the  Czar  was  to  remain  in  posses- 
sion of  all  the  countries  conquered  by  his  arms,  on 
the  Baltic  and  the  Grulf  of  Finland. 

Peter  was  much  rejoiced  at  this  event,  as  it  re- 
lieved him  from  the  necessity  of  keeping  such  large 


PETER   THE   GREAT.  219 

armies  on  the  frontiers  of  Sweden,  and  left  him  at 
liberty  to  give  his  whole  time  to  the  improvement  of 
his  own  empire,  and  to  perfecting  those  arts  and 
sciences  which  he  had  introduced  among  his  subjects, 
at  the  expense  of  such  great  labor  and  industry. 

By  this  peace,  Peter  now  attained  the  summit  of 
his  glory.  Nothing  could  surpass  the  joy  of  the  peo- 
ple of  Russia,  as  the  news  spread  from  one  end  of 
the  empire  to  the  other.  Prisoners  were  set  free  by 
order  of  the  Emperor,  privileges  which  had  been  cut 
off  were  restored,  and  toleration  was  granted  to  those 
not  of  the  established  religion. 

The  Senate,  after  much  deliberation  with  the 
heads  of  the  Church,  came  to  a  resolution  that  his 
Majesty,  having  acquired  for  the  nation  so  much  glory 
in  the  eyes  of  the  whole  world,  should  be  entreated 
as  a  token  of  acknowledgment  on  the  part  of  his  sub- 
jects, and  after  the  example  of  other  sovereigns,  to 
accept  and  adopt  the  titles  of  "  Peter  the  Great, 
Emperor  of  all  the  Russias,  and  Father  of  his  Coun- 
try ;  "  praying  him,  in  the  name  of  all  the  states  in 
the  Russian  empire,  to  permit  them  to  make  an  offer- 
ing of  these  titles  for  his  acceptance,  on  the  day  of 
the  celebration  of  the  peace  in  the  great  cathedral. 

His  Majesty,  after  considerable  hesitation,  at  last 
consented ;  and  on  the  day  in  question,  after  divine 
service,   the   Archbishop    of    Plescow    delivered    a 


220  THE   HISTOEY    OF 

speech,  in  which  he  enumerated  all  the  glorious  ex- 
ploits of  his  Majesty,  and  the  favors  he  had  heaped 
on  the  nation,  and  his  subjects  during  his  reign. 

Then  the  Great  Chancellor,  Count  Golofkin,  de- 
livered a  similar  speech,  in  which,  in  the  name  of  all 
the  states  of  the  Empire,  he  humbly  entreated  the 
Czar  to  accept  the  above-mentioned  titles. 

Then  the  whole  Senate  thrice  repeated,  "  Long 
live  Peter  the  Great,  Emperor  of  all  the  Russias, 
and  Father  of  his  Country  !  "  and  the  assembly  testi- 
fied their  applause  by  the  sound  of  trumpets  and 
kettle-drums,  and  the  roar  of  cannon  from  the  ram- 
parts, the  admiralty,  and  one  hundred  and  twenty- 
five  galleys,  which  had  arrived  the  same  day,  and 
brought  upwards  of  twenty  thousand  men,  who  had 
been  serving  in  Finland. 

In  going  out  of  the  Cathedral  their  imperial 
Majesties  were  saluted  with  the  acclamations  of  the 
people.  They  proceeded  to  the  hall  of  the  Senate 
house,  where  the  promotions  of  several  military  and 
naval  ofiicers  were  declared,  after  which  the  assembly 
srt  down  to  table,  where  more  than  a  thousand  per- 
sons of  both  sexes  were  entertained. 

The  streets  ran  with  wine,  an  ox  was  roasted 
whole,  and  stuffed  with  fowls  for  the  populace,  and 
the  night  concluded  with  illuminations  and  fireworks. 
The    rejoicings    continued   for   fifteen   days,    during 


PETER  THE  GEEAT.  221 

which  were  held  five  or  six  grand  masquerades,  in 
which  the  whole  court  bore  a  part. 

But  as  is  the  case  every  where  else  through  life, 
joy  and  grief  were  mingled  in  the  history  of  Peter 
the  Great,  for  his  little  son,  who  had  been  declared 
hereditary  prince  of  Russia,  had  died  at  the  age  of 
five  years,  to  the  great  grief  of  his  parents  and  of 
the  whole  nation. 

Peter  now,  on  different  pretences,  but  in  reality  in 
order  to  establish  trade,  by  way  of  the  Caspian  Sea, 
went  upon  an  expedition  against  Persia,  on  which  he 
was  accompanied  by  Catharine.  This  expedition,  the 
details  of  which  it  is  not  my  intention  to  give  here, 
proved  unsuccessful,  and  the  army  of  the  Czar  re- 
turned to  Russia. 

Great  preparations  were  now  made  for  the  public 
coronation  of  Catharine,  which  ceremony,  entirely 
new  and  unusual  as  it  was  in  the  Russian  empire,  was 
intended  to  prepare  the  minds  of  the  people  to  ac- 
knowledge her  as  Empress,  after  the  death  of  the 
Czar. 

On  the  day  of  the  coronation,  Peter  walked  be- 
fore Catharine,. as  Captain  of  a  new  company,  which 
he  had  created,  under  the  name  of  the  "  Knights  of 
the  Empress." 

"  When  they  arrived  at  the  Cathedral,"  says  Vol- 
taire,   "  Peter  himself   placed  the  crown  upon  her 


222  THE  HISTOET   OF 

head ;  and  when  she  would  have  fallen  down  and  em- 
braced his  knees,  he  prevented  her ;  and  at  their  re- 
turn from  the  church,  he  caused  the  sceptre  and  globe 
to  be  carried  before  her.  The  ceremony  was  alto- 
gether worthy  of  an  emperor ;  for  on  every  public 
occasion  Peter  showed  as  much  pomp  and  magnifi- 
cence, as  he  did  plainness  and  simplicity  in  his  pri- 
vate manner  of  living. 

"  Having  thus  crowned  his  wife,  he  at  length  de- 
termined to  give  his  eldest  daughter  Anna  in  mar- 
riage to  the  Duke  of  Holstein.  This  princess  greatly 
resembled  her  father  in  the  face,  was  very  majestic, 
and  of  a  singular  beauty.  She  was  betrothed  to  the 
Duke  of  Holstein  on  the  24th  of  November,  1724, 
but  with  very  little  ceremony. 

"  Peter  had  for  some  time  past  found  his  health 
greatly  impaired,  and  this  (together  with  some  family 
uneasiness,  that  perhaps  rather  increased  his  disorder, 
which  in  a  short  time  proved  fatal,)  permitted  him  to 
have  but  very  little  relish  for  feasts,  or  public  diver- 
sions, in  this  latter  part  of  his  life. 

"  The  Empress  Catharine  had  at  that  time  a 
young  man  for  the  chamberlain  of  her  household, 
whose  name  was  Moens  de  la  Croix,  a  native  of  Rus- 
sia, but  of  Flemish  parents,  remarkably  handsome  and 
genteel.     His  sister,  Madame  de  Bale,  was  lady  of 


TETER    CROWNING    CATHERINE, 


PETER  THE  GEEAT.  223 

the  bedchamber  to  the  Empress,  and  these  two  had 
entirely  the  management  of  her  household. 

"  Being  both  accused  of  having  taken  presents, 
they  were  sent  to  prison,  and  afterwards  brought  to 
their  trial,  by  express  order  of  the  Czar ;  who,  by  an 
edict  in  the  year  1714,  had  forbidden  any  one  holding 
a  place  about  court,  to  receive  any  present  or  other 
gratuity,  on  pain  of  being  declared  infamous,  and  suf- 
fering death ;  and  this  prohibition  was  several  times 
renewed. 

"  The  brother  and  sister  were  found  guilty,  and 
received  sentence ;  and  all  those  who  had  either  pur- 
chased their  services,  or  given  them  any  present  in 
return  for  the  same,  were  included  therein,  except  the 
Duke  of  Holstein,  and  his  minister ;  as  it  is  probable 
%that  the  presents  made  by  that  prince  to  those  who 
had  a  share  in  bringing  about  his  marriage  with  the 
Czar's  daughter,  were  not  looked  upon  in  a  criminal 
light. 

"  Moens  was  condemned  to  be  beheaded,  and  his 
sister,  (who  was  the  Empress's  favorite,)  to  receive 
eleven  strokes  of  the  knout.  The  two  sons  of  this 
lady,  one  of  whom  was  an  officer  in  the  household,  and 
the  other  a  page,  were  degraded,  and  sent  to  serve 
as  private  soldiers  in  the  army  in  Persia. 

"  These  severities,  though  they  shock  our  notions, 
were  perhaps  necessary  in  a  country  where  the  ob- 


224  THE   HISTOET   OF 

servance  of  the  laws  is  to  be  enforced  only  by  the 
most  terrifying  rigor.  The  Empress  solicited  her  fa- 
vorite's pardon ;  but  the  Czar,  offended  at  her  appli- 
cation, peremptorily  refused  her,  and  in  the  heat  of 
his  passion,  seeing  a  fine  looking-glass  in  the  apart- 
ment, he,  with  one  blow  of  his  fist,  broke  it  into  a 
thousand  pieces. 

"  Turning  to  the  Empress,  '  Thus,'  said  he,  l  thou 
seest  I  can,  with  one  stroke  of  my  hand,  reduce  this 
glass  to  its  original  dust.' 

"  Catharine  in  a  melting  accent  replied :  '  It  is 
true  you  have  destroyed  one  of  the  greatest  orna- 
ments of  your  palace,  but  do  you  think  that  palace  is 
the  more  charming  for  its  loss  ? ' 

"  This  answer  appeased  the  Emperor's  wrath,  but 
all  the  favor  that  Catharine  could  obtain  for  the 
woman  of  her  bedchamber  was,  that  she  should  re- 
ceive only  five  strokes  of  the  knout  instead  of  eleven. 

"  I  should  not  have  related  this  anecdote,"  con- 
tinues Yolfcaire,  "  had  it  not  been  attested  by  a  pub- 
lic minister,  who  was  eye-witness  of  the  whole  trans- 
action, and  who,  by  having  made  presents  to  the  un- 
fortunate brother  and  sister,  was  perhaps  himself  one 
of  the  principal  causes  of  their  disgrace  and  suffer- 
ing. 

"  It  was  this  affair  which  emboldened  those  who 
judge  of  every  thing  in  the  worst  light,  to  spread  the 


PETER   THE   GREAT.  225 

report  that  Catharine  hastened  the  death  of  her  hus- 
band, whose  hasty  temper  filled  her  with  fears,  which 
overbalanced  the  gratitude  she  owed  him  for  the 
many  favors  he  had  heaped  upon  her. 

"  These  cruel  suspicions  were  confirmed  by  Catha- 
rine's recalling  to  court  her  woman  of  the  bed-cham- 
ber, immediately  upon  the  death  of  the  Czar,  and 
giving  her  her  former  place  and  influence. 

"  It  is  the  duty  of  an  historian,"  adds  Yoltaire, 
"  to  relate  the  public  reports  which  have  been  in  all 
times  spread,  on  the  decease  of  princes,  who  have 
been  snatched  away  by  sudden  death,  as  if  nature 
was  not  alone  sufficient  to  put  a  period  to  the  exist- 
ence of  a  crowned  head  as  well  as  that  of  a  beggar ; 
but  it  is  likewise  the  duty  of  a  historian,  to  show 
how  far  such  reports  were  rashly  or  unjustly  formed." 


10* 


226  THE  HISTOEY   OF 


CHAPTER   XXII. 

Last  illness  of  the  Czar — His  death — Grief  of  the  Nation — Opinions  of 
other  nations  with  regard  to  Peter— Last  honors  paid  to  the  Czar — 
His  Epitaph. 

Peter  the  Great  had  long  been  suffering  from  a 
painful  and  incurable  disease.  The  mineral  waters 
which  he  had  tried  had  proved  of  very  little  service, 
and  he  found  himself  growing  sensibly  weaker  from 
the  beginning  of  the  year  1724.  His  labors,  from 
which  he  could  not  be  persuaded  to  rest,  only  in- 
creased his  disorder  and  hastened  his  end.  His  suf- 
ferings became  intolerable,  and  were  now  accompa- 
nied by  almost  constant  delirium. 

Whenever  his  reason  for  a  time  returned,  he  en- 
deavored to  write,  though  he  could  only  scrawl  a  few 
lines  which  no  one  could  read.  And  it  was  with  the 
greatest  difficulty  that  these  words  in  the  Russian 
language  could  be  distinguished,  "  Let  every  thing  be 
given  to — " 


PETER  THE   GREAT.  227 

He  then  called  his  daughter,  the  princess  Anna,  to 
his  bedside,  that  he  might  dictate  to  her,  (for  Catha- 
rine could  neither  read  nor  write,)  but  when  she 
came  to  him  he  had  lost  the  power  of  speech,  and  fell 
into  a  fit  which  lasted  sixteen  hours.  The  Empress 
did  not  quit  his  bedside  for  three  nights  together. 
At  length  he  breathed  his  last  in  her  arms,  on  the 
28th  of  January,  1725,  about  six  o'clock  in  the 
morning. 

His  body  was  carried  into  the  great  hall  of  the 
palace,  accompanied  by  all  the  imperial  family,  the 
Senate,  all  the  principal  personages  of  state,  and  an 
immense  concourse  of  people.  It  was  there  exposed 
on  a  bed  of  state,  and  every  one  was  permitted  to  ap- 
proach and  kiss  his  hand,  till  the  day  of  his  inter- 
ment, which  was  on  the  21st  of  March,  1725. 

It  has  been  thought,  and  it  has  been  asserted  in 
print,  that  he  had  appointed  his  wife  Catharine  to 
succeed  him  in  the  empire  by  his  last  will ;  but  "  the 
truth  is,"  says  Yoltaire,  "  he  never  made  a  will,  or  at 
least  none  that  ever  appeared,  a  most  astonishing  neg- 
ligence in  so  great  a  legislator,  and  a  proof  that  he 
did  not  think  his  disorder  mortal." 

At  the  time  of  his  death  no  one  had  any  idea  who 
was  to  be  his  successor.  He  left  behind  him  his 
grandson  Peter,  son  of  the  unfortunate  Alexis,  and 


228  THE   HISTORY   OP 

his  eldest  daughter,  Anna,  married  to  the  Duke  of 
Holstein. 

There  was  a  strong  party  in  favor  of  young  Peter ; 
hut  Prince  Menzikoff,  who  never  had  any  other  inte- 
rests than  those  of  the  Empress  Catharine,  took  care 
to  be  beforehand  with  all  parties  and  their  designs. 

Accordingly,  as  the  Czar  drew  near  the  moment 
of  death,  Menzikoff  caused  the  Empress  to  remove 
into  another  apartment  of  the  palace,  where  all  their 
friends  were  assembled  ready  to  meet  her. 

Here  a  council  was  held,  at  the  breaking  up  of 
which,  Catharine  returned  to  the  bedside  of  the  Czar, 
who  soon  after  breathed  his  last  in  her  arms.  As 
soon  as  his  death  was  made  known,  the  principal  sen- 
ators, and  general  officers,  repaired  to  the  palace, 
where  the  Empress  made  a  speech  to  them,  to  which 
Menzikoff  replied  in  the  name  of  all  present. 

The  Empress  then  withdrew,  and  the  Archbishop 
of  Pleskow  addressed  the  assembly,  telling  them  that 
on  the  eve  of  the  coronation  of  the  Empress  Catha- 
rine, the  deceased  Czar  had  declared  to  him,  that  his 
sole  reason  for  placing  the  crown  upon  her  head,  was 
that  she  might  wear  it  after  his  death ;  upon  which 
the  assembly  unanimously  signed  the  proclamation, 
and  Catharine  succeeded  her  husband  on  the  throne 
the  very  day  of  his  death. 

"  Peter  the   Great   was   regretted   by  all   those 


PETER   THE   GREAT.  229 

whom  he  had  favored,"  says  Voltaire  ;  "  and  the  de- 
scendants of  those  who  had  stood  out  for  the  ancient 
customs,  soon  began  to  look  upon  him  as  their 
Father. 

"  Foreign  nations,  who  have  beheld  the  duration 
of  his  establishments,  have  always  expressed  the 
highest  admiration  for  his  memory ;  acknowledging 
that  he  was  actuated  by  more  than  common  prudence 
and  wisdom,  and  not  by  a  vain  desire  of  doing  extra- 
ordinary  things. 

"  All  Europe  knows,  that  though  he  was  fond  of 
fame,  he  coveted  it  only  for  noble  principles ;  that 
though  he  had  faults,  they  never  obscured  his  noble 
qualities  ;  and  that  though  as  a  man  he  was  liable  to 
errors,  as  a  monarch  he  was  always  great. 

"  He  every  way  forced  nature,  in  his  subjects,  in 
himself,  by  sea  and  by  land ;  but  he  forced  her  only 
to  render  her  more  pleasing  and  noble.  The  arts 
which  he  transplanted  with  his  own  hands  into  coun- 
tries till  then  in  a  manner  savage,  have  flourished  and 
produced  fruits  which  are  lasting  testimonies  of  his 
genius,  and  will  render  his  memory  immortal ;  since 
they  now  appear  as  natives  of  those  places,  to  which 
he  introduced  them. 

"  The  civil,  political,  and  military  government, 
trade,  manufactures,  the  arts  and  sciences,  have  all 
been  carried  on  according  to  his  plan,  and  by  an  event 


230  THE~HISTORY    OF 

not  to  be  paralleled  in  history,  we  nave  seen  four 
women  successively  ascend  the  throne  after  him,  who 
have  maintained,  in  full  vigor,  all  the  great  designs 
he  accomplished,  and  have  completed  those  which  he 
had  begun. 

"  The  court,"  adds  our  historian,  "  has  under- 
gone some  revolutions  since  his  death,-  but  the  empire 
has  not  suffered  one.  Its  splendor  was  increased  by 
Catharine  I. ;  it  triumphed  over  the  Turks  and 
Swedes  under  Anna;  and  under  Elizabeth  it  con- 
quered Prussia  and  a  part  of  Pomerania ;  and  lastly 
it  has  tasted  the  sweets  of  peace,  and  has  seen  the 
arts  nourish  in  fulness  and  security  in  the  reign  of 
Catharine  II. 

"  Let  the  historians  of  that  nation  enter  into  the 
minutest  circumstances  of  the  new  creation,  the  wars 
and  undertakings  of  Peter  the  Great ;  let  them  rouse 
the  emulation  of  their  countrymen,  by  celebrating 
those  heroes  who  assisted  this  monarch  in  his  labors 
in  the  field  and  in  the  cabinet. 

"  It  is  sufficient  for  a  stranger,  a  disinterested  ad- 
mirer of  merit,  to  have  endeavored  to  set  to  view 
that  great  man,  who  learned  of  Charles  Twelfth  to 
conquer  him,  who  twice  left  his  dominions  in  order  to 
govern  them  the  better,  who  worked  with  his  own 
hands,  in  almost  all  the  useful  and  necessary  arts,  to 


PETER   THE   GKEAT.  231 

set  an  example  of  instruction  to  his  people,  and  who 
was  the  founder  and  the  Father  of  his  Empire." 

Catharine  paid  the  last  duties  to  her  husband's 
ashes,  with  a  pomp  becoming  the  greatest  monarch 
that  Russia,  or  perhaps  any  other  country,  had  ever 
known.  And  though  there  is  no  court  of  Europe 
where  splendor  and  magnificence  are  carried  to  a 
greater  height  on  these  occasions,  than  in  that  of 
Russia,  yet  it  may  with  truth  be  said,  that  she  even 
surpassed  herself  in  the  funeral  honors  paid  to  her 
illustrious  husband. 

She  purchased  the  most  precious  kinds  of  marble, 
and  employed  some  of  the  most  eminent  sculptors  of 
Italy  to  erect  a  monument  to  this  hero,  which  might, 
if  possible,  transmit  the  memory  of  his  great  actions 
to  the  most  distant  ages. 

Not  satisfied  with  this,  she  caused  a  medal  to  be 
struck,  worthy  of  the  ancients.  On  one  side  was  re- 
presented the  bust  of  the  late  Emperor,  and  these 
words : 

"  Peter  the  Great,  Emperor  and  Sovereign  of  all 
Russia,  born  May  30th,  1672."  On  the  reverse  was 
the  Empress  sitting,  with  the  crown  on  her  head,  the 
globe  and  sceptre  by  her  side  on  a  table,  and  before 
her  were  a  sphere,  sea  charts,  plans,  mathematical  in- 
struments, arms,  &c. 

At  distances  in  three  different  placos,  were  re- 


232  THE   HISTORY   OP 

presented  an  edifice  on  the  sea-coast,  with  a  platform 
before  it,  a  ship  and  galley  at  sea,  and  the  late  Em- 
peror in  the  clouds,  supported  by  Eternity,  looking  on 
the  Empress,  and  showing  her  with  his  right  hand 
all  the  treasures  he  had  left  her,  with  these  words : 

"  Behold  what  I  have  left  you  I " 

Several  of  these  medals  she  ordered  to  be  struck 
in  gold,  to  the  weight  of  fifty  ducats,  and  distributed 
among  the  foreign  ministers,  and  all  the  grandees  of 
the  Empire,  as  a  testimony  of  her  respect  and  grati- 
tude to  the  memory  of  her  late  husband,  to  whose 
generosity  she  took  a  pleasure  in  owning  herself  in- 
debted for  her  present  elevated  situation. 

The  following  is  given  us  as  the  Czar's  epitaph  : 


PETER  THE   GREAT.  g33 

HEBE   LIETH 
ALL  THAT  COULD  DIE  OF  A  MAN  IMMOETAL, 

PETER  ALEXOWITZ, 

IT   IS    ALMOST    8UPEEFLUOUS    TO    ADD 

fSxint  $Uptnx  ii  ^\\nn\ 

A  TITLE 

■WHICH   INSTEAD   OF   ADDINGTO    HIS   GLOEY, 

BECAME  GLOBIOUS  BY  HIS   WEABING  IT. 

LET    ANTIQUITY   BE    DUMB, 

NOE    BOAST    HEE    ALEXANDEE    OE    HEE    C-SSAE. 

HOW  EASY  WAS   VICTOEY 

TO  LEADEES  WHO  WEEE  FOLLOWED  BY  HEBOESt 

AND    WHOSE    SOLDIEB8    FELT    A    NOBLE    DISDAIN 

AT  BEING  THOUGHT  LESS  VIGILANT  THAN  THEIE  GENEBALS  ! 

BUT  HE 

WHO  IN  THIS  PLACE  FIEST   KNEW  BEST, 

FOUND     SUBJECTS     BASE    AND     INACTIVE, 

UNWAELIKE,  UNLEAENED,  UNTEACTABLE, 

NEITHEB   COVETOUS   OF   FAME,   NOB    FEAELESS   OF   DANGEB, 

CEEATUEES  WITH  THE   NAMES    OF    MEN, 

BUT  WITH   QUALITIES  BATHES   BEUTAL  THAN  BATIONAL  ! 

YET    EVEN    THESE 

HE  POLISHED  FEOM  THEIB  NATIVE  EUGGEDNESS, 

AND,     BBEAKING     OUT     LIKE     A     NEW     SUN, 

TO  ILLUMINATE  THE  MINDS  OF  A  PEOPLE, 

DISPELLED   THEIB   NIGHT  OF   HEEEDITABY  DAEKNESS ! 

AND,  BY  FOECE  OF  HIS  INVINCIBLE  INFLUENCE, 

TAUGHT  THEM  TO  CONQUEB 

EVEN  THE  CONQUEEOES  OF  GEEMANY. 

OTHEE  PEINCES   HAVE   COMMANDED   VICTOEIOUS   ABMIES ; 

THIS    COMMANDEE   CEEATED   THEM. 

BLUSH,   OH,   AET!   AT   A   A   HEEO    WHO    OWED   THEE   NOTHING  I 

EXULT,  OH,  NATUEE  !    FOB  THINE  WAS  THIS  PBODIGY  I 


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Aitveutures  of  Capt.  John  Smith. 

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Pratt,    ...  33 

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Philip, 3S 

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Cortez.    By  do 3S 

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ginia.   By  Mary  Gertrude,         .        38 
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Revolution.  2  vols.  ...  "5 
Southey't  Life  of  Oliver  Cromwell,        38 

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Louise  ;  or,  The  Beauty  of  Integrity,  25 

Marvatt  s  Settlers  in  Canada,         .  62 

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"         Scenes  in  Africa,      .         .  63 

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hiss  mcintosh's  works. 

Aunt  Kitty's  Tales,  12mo.       .        .        75, 
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Self-Control 38 

Florence  Amott ;   or,  Is  She  Gen- 
Grace   and  Clara  ;  or,   Be  Just  as 

well  as  Generous,  ...  38 
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but  Truth  Dearer,  ...  38 
Emily  Herbert  ;   or,  The    Happy 

Home, 37 

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Mamma's  Story  Book,'.   ...  75 

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Faggots  for  the  Fireside,  .  .113 
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ers,        j    u 

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THEIR   CHILDREN. 

lice  Franklin.  By  Marv  Howitt,  38 
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Martineau, 38 

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Ellis, 38 

Domestic     Tales.        By    Hannah 

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Farmer's  Daughter  (The).  By  Mrs. 

Cameron 83 

Fiiat  Impressions.   By  Mrs.  Ellis,  .        88 


Ho 


ipe  On,  Hope  Everl  By  Mary 
Howitt,  .... 

Little  Com,  Much  Care.    By  do.    . 

Looking-Glass  lor  the  Mind.  Many 
plates,  .  .... 

Love  and  Mol  *y.  By  Mar"  Howitt, 


Minister's  Family.  By  Mrs.  Ellis, 
My  Own  Story.  By  Alary  Howi " 
My  Uncle,  the  Clockmaker.  By  ( 


No    Sense    Like  Common    Sense. 

By  do 

P'asant  and   the   Prince.     By  H. 

Martineau,  ..... 
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Somerville  Hall.  By  Mrs.  Ellis,  . 
Sowing  and  Reapins.     By  Mary 

Howitt,  ,  . 

Story  of  a  Genius 

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Arthur, 

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Sandham,    

Which   is  the  Wiser!     By  Mary 

Howitt, 

Who  Shall  be  Greatest  1  By  do.  . 
Work  and  Wages.   By  do.     .        . 

SECOND  BKBIB8. 

Chances  and  Changes.  By  Charles 
Burdett 

Goldmaker's  Village.  By  H. 
Zschokke, 

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Susan  Pindar's  Story  Book,     . 

Sunshine  of  Greystone,  .        .        . 

Travels  of  Bob  the  Squirrel,    . 

Wonderful  Story  Book   .         .        . 

Willy's  First  Present,   . 

Week's  Delight ;  or.  Games  and 
Stories  for  the  Parlor,         .        . 

William  Tell,  the  Hero  of  Switzer- 
land,      

Young  Student.  By  Madame  Guizot, 


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Literature. 

An  Attic  Philosopher  in  Paris, 
Appletons'  Library  Manual,    . 
Agnell's  Book  of  Chess, 
Arnold's  Miscellaneous  Works,      .    ■ 
Arthur.  The  Successful  Merchant,  9 

A  Book  for  Summer  Time  in  the 

Country, 56 

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publ.,eacb.   .         .        .         -         .    2  0% 
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I      as  it  Is,  U 


1  25 
1  50 
75 
75 
37 
59 
If 


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&  2d  Series,  each, 
Ewbunks'  World  in  a  Workshop, 
Ellis'  Women  of  England, 

"     Hearts  and  Homes, 

u     Prevention  Better  than  Cure 
Foster's  Essays  on  ChristianMorals 
Goldsmith's  Vicar  of  Wakefield, 
Grant's  Memoirs  of  an  American 

Lady, 

Gaieties  and  Gravities.    By  Horace 

Smith, 

Guizot's  History  of  Civilization, 
Hearth-Stone.   By  Rev.  S.  Osgood 
Hobson.    My  Uncle  and  I, 
Ingoldsby  Legends, 
Isham's  Mud  Cabin,        .        . 
Johnson's  Meaning  of  Words, 
Kavanagh's  Women    of    Christi 

anity, 

Leger's  Animal  Magnetism    . 
Life's  Discipline.     A  Tale  of  Hun- 


Margaret  Maitland, 

Maiden  and  Married  Life  of  Mary 

Powell, 

Morton    Montague ;   or  a  Young 

Christian's  Choice, 
Macaulay'a  Miscellanies,      vols. 
Maxims  of  Washington.      By  J 

F.  Schroeder, 
Mile  Stones  in  our  Life  Journey, 


MINIATURE  CLASSICAL  LIBRARY. 

Poetic  Lacon  ;  or,  Aphorisms  from 

the  Poets,  _      .        .        ,        38 

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Clarke's  Scripture  Promises.  Com 

plete,    

Elizabeth ;   or,  The   Exiles  of  Si 

beria, 

Goldsmith's  Vicar  of  Wakefield, 

"  Essays,         . 

Gems  from  American  Poets, 
Hannah  More's  Private  Devotions, 
"        "  Practical  Piety.    2 

vols .75 

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Hoffman's  Lays  of  the  Hudson,  Ac.  38 
Johnson's  History  of  Rasselas, 
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Moore's  Lalla  Rookh,  .  . 
"  Melodies.  Complete, 
Paul  and  Virginia,  .  . 
Pollok's  Course  of  Time, 
Pure  Gold  from  the  Rivers  of  Wis- 


75 
50 

75 

75 

50 
1  00 
1  00 

75 

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1  00 

1  00 


75 
5  00 


1  00 
1  00 


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Token  of  the  Heart.  Do.  of  Af- 
fection. Do.  of  Remembrance 
Do.  of  Friendship.  Do.  of  Love 
Each,    ..... 

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Wilson's  Sacra  Privata, . 

Voun^s  Night  Thoughts. 

Little  Pedlington  and  the  Pedling- 


Prismatics.    Tales  and  Poems, 

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Republic  of  the  United  States.  Its 
Duties,  &c.    • 

Preservation  of  Health  and  Preven- 
tion of  Disease,    .... 

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Gayerre, 

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ted,     ...... 

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White 

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Chest, 

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Rhine. 

The  Luck  of  Barry  Lyndon,  . 

Men's  Wives, 

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mons,      2  00 

Jotter'a  Mass  and  Rubrics,     .        .  38 
Coit's  Puritanism-  .        .                .  1  00 
Evans'  Rectory  of  Valehead, .       .  50 
Srayson's  True  Theory  of  Christi- 
anity   1  00 

Sresjey  on  Preaching,    .        .        .  1  25 

Griffin's  Gospel  its  Own  Advocate,  1  00 

Hecker's  Book  of  the  Soul,     .        .  1  00 

Hooker's  Complete  Works.  2  vols,  4  00 

James'  Happiness,           •        •        •  25 

James  on  the  Nature  of  Evil,         ,  1  00 

Jarvia'  Reply  to  Milner,         .  75 

KJngsley's  Sacred  Choir        .  75 


Keble'a  Christian  Year,           .        .  81 

Layman'a  Letters  to  a  Biahop        .  25 
Logan's  Sermons   and  Expository 

Lectures 1  IS 

Lyra  Apoatolica,      .        ...  50 

Marshall's  Notes  on  Episcopacy,    .  1  00 
Newman's  Sermons  on  Subjects  of 

the  Day,       .       .        .       ,       .  1  00 

"         Essay  on  Christian  Doc- 
trine,    Tl 

Ogilby  on  Lay  Baptism,          .        .  60 

Pearson  on  the  Creed,    .        .        .  2  08 
Pulpit  Cyclopaedia  and  Ministers' 

Companion,  .               ...  2  50 
Sewell's  Reading  Preparatory    to 

Confirmation 75 

Southard's  Mystery  of  Godliness,..  75 

Sketches  and  Skeletons  of  Sermons,  2  50 

Spencer's  Christian  Instructed        .  1  00 

Sherlock's  Practical  Christian,       .  75 
Sutton's    Disce   Vivere — Learn   to 

Live,     ......  76 

Swartz's  Letters  to  ray  Godchild,    .  38 

Trench's  Notes  on  the  Parables,    .  1  75 

"       Notes  on  the  Miraclea.     .  \  75 

Taylor'a  Holy  Living  and  Dying  •  1  00 

"      Episcopacy  Asserted  and 

Maintained,          ....  75 

Tyng's  Family  Commentary,          .  2  00 
Walker's    Sermons    on    Practical 

Subjects, 2  00 

Watson  on  Confirmation,        .        .  06 
Wilberforce's  Manual  for  Commu- 
nicants,           38 

Wilson's  Lectures  on  Colosaiana,    .  75 

Wyatt's  Christian  Altar,        .        .  38 


Voyages  and  Travels. 


Africa  and  the  American  Flag,        , 
Appletons'  Southern  and  Western 

Guide, 1  00 

"         Northern  and  Eastern 

Guide, 1  25 

"         Complete  U.  S.  Guide 

Book,  .... 
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Illus., 

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nia,      ..••*. 
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Dix's  Winter  in  Madeira,        . 
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Thibet,    2  vols. 
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12mo 

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Russia.    By  Count  do  Cuatine,        , 
Squier's  Nicaragua.  2  vols.    . 
Tappan's     Step    from    the    New 

World  to  the  Old,     . 
Wanderings  atd  Fortunes  of  Germ 

Emigrants, 


1  35 


.    2  00 


5  00 
2  00 

1  25 
t  M 
1  00 


10» 
50 

2  <• 

1  00 
1  25 
5  00 


6        D.  Appleton  &  Company's  List  of  New  Works. 


Williams'  Isthmus  of  Tehuantepec. 
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GRACE  AGUILAE'S  WORKS. 

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l'^nio 

The  Mother's  Recompense.    lQmo. 
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1  26 

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12mo 76 

Brice's  Fawn  of  the  Pale  Faces. 

12mo 75 

Busy  Moments  of  an  Idle  Woman,        76 
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Don  Quixotte,  Translated.    IUust. 
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MRS.    ELLIS'  WORKS. 

Heasts  and  Homes ;  or,  Social  Dis- 
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Prevention  Better  than  Cure, 
Women  of  England,       .        .        . 

Emmanuel  PhilKbert.  By  Dumas, 
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dleton,  .        ,        . 

"  "        Grantley  Manor 

1  vol.     12mo.       . 
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i  oa 

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76  ^ 
63 

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Alice,  ..... 
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76 


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limo 2  95 

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Heloise.   12mo.    •     .  .        .        .76 


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